A Deal With A Devil
by Fishing For Teeth
Summary: Something happened during the mission in Wave Country, but Sakura can't exactly remember what, or rather she doesn't want to. However, it's getting harder to ignore once more clues come to light. Things get worse when her mind starts to turn on itself.
1. Chapter 1

"Is killing allowed?"

Three pairs of eyes nervously looked at the blonde leaning on the handrail of the bridge where they holding their meeting. However the one who had spoken only focused his blue eyes on the eldest of a group, a gray haired man wearing a mask that covered most of his except his right eye.

"Is killing allowed?" The teen repeated.

The older man finally broke out of his stupor, scratching his head in a seemingly aloof manner but actually was his way to hide his anxiety, "There is a chance that killing may take place, but that is only allowed during certain parts of the exam. Also, killing is _strongly discouraged_ _unless absolutely necessary_. Do you understand me, Naruto?"

The teenager's smile looked innocent but the glint in his eyes told an entirely different story. "I understand sensei. I understand perfectly."

"Alright then, show up tomorrow at the location specified on the card at the appointed time. It seems like too much of a nice day to train so I'm going to give you rest of the it off. If you have more questions or just want to say hi then I'll probably be at the memorial stone. See ya!"

With that said the jounin disappeared in a puff of smoke leaving the trio of genin to awkwardly stare at nothing in particular, or at least two of three were trying to avoid the gaze at the remaining one.

"Let's go for a walk."

The girl eagerly nodded, maybe a bit too eagerly, while the other boy simply grunted, which was his own way of compiling.

While they walked the female babbled, pointing out different things along the way, a flower pot, a broken window, a fat man in tight clothes, talking without any real meaning behind her observations, just trying to ward off the silence that would've otherwise engulf the group of three.

As they walked people looked, mostly civilians. Some looks were amiably directed at the male with the small red and white crest on the back of his shirt, some confused when seeing the pink haired girl apparently talking to herself. Most however were focused one leading the two and mainly consisted of looks of fear and barely concealed animosity, looks he simply returned with the same innocent smile he had worn earlier.

Turning a corner the three genin suddenly heard a small cry for help, clearly from the throat of a child, coming opposite the way they were headed.

The kunoichi stopped talking and looked at the one leading them. The blue haired boy also turned his head, albeit far more discreetly.

The lead shinobi paused and was about to continue on his way when the cry came again, but this time the voice was clearer and recognizable, to him at least.

* * *

(The Streets of Konoha)

"Let me go you bastard!"

"I'm a bastard, huh? That's quite an insult coming from a little snot like you. Maybe I should teach a lesson?"

"Just make it quick Kankuro; I don't want one of those damn civilians rating on us."

"Alright, alright, keep your panties on."

The hooded boy's fist descended at a speed the little boy he was holding interpreted as only a blur. However it stopped mere centimeters from connecting when a suddenly a very dense cloud of killing intent filled the area freezing everyone in their tracks.

"_Shit! Did a jounin arrive?"_ was the shared thought between the duo.

Seemingly frozen in place Kankuro slowly turned his eyes towards the source of the murderous feeling only to be greeted by a tall male with chin length blond hair wearing a fishnet shirt under a short sleeved black one with an dark orange spiral on the front and loose dark orange pants, complete with a black sandals. His most distinguishing feature was the three identical whisker marks that adorned each cheek.

Behind him stood a girl with pink hair tied into a bun, wearing a short red dress with a floral print of the front, next to her was a scowling dark haired boy wearing white shorts and a blue shirt; they both wore the same blue sandals.

Their appearance though wasn't the thing concerning Kankuro at the moment. What was currently occupying his mind was regaining his mobility and figuring out how he hadn't sensed the approach of the other group, who were now coming closer.

"Onii-chan!"

The brown haired lad squirmed and wiggled like a monkey finally managing to escape his captor's grasp. Once his feet hit the ground he immediately made a beeline towards his savior hiding behind the older boy's legs.

"Onii-chan the Catman tried to hit me! You should go him beat him up for me!"

"Now, now Konohamaru "Catman" might actually have a reason for trying to hit you. After all you are kind of a brat." Naruto said.

Konohamaru pouted while his "onii-chan" turned to face "Catman".

"Hi, nice to meet you. Kankuro, was it? Did you have a reason for trying to hit my little friend here?"

The puppeteer was silent for a moment looking for a way for to dominate the conversation now that the murderous pressure had eased up. Seeing few other avenues he could take, he chose the one that worked best for him in the past: intimidation.

"Who the hell are you to be asking me questions?" he yelled angrily.

Unfortunately for the Sand ninja his opponent didn't back down, as a matter of fact the guy was smiling!

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto and you are obviously an ass-clown who can't apply his own make up right, or did your mother do it for you?" The blonde replied smoothly.

Blood rushed to Kankuro's cheeks as his anger rose. How dare this leaf bastard talk to him like that! He had spent almost half a hour in front of the mirror! Normally he would have more patience when faced with a situation like this, years of lessons in diplomacy were to blame, but something about his the genin made his blood boil in his veins.

With a twitch of his right index finger he sent a string of chakra circling around his back and attached it to the human sized puppet strapped there.

"Stop it Kankuro, we don't have time for you to waste beating up some Leaf weaklings," said Temari turning to face the other group with a derisive smirk, "Besides they don't even look like they're worth your time."

Naruto smirk remained where it was, even widening by a degree, "Looks can be deceiving, even _an amateur_ knows that.

Just like her brother the fan wielder felt anger suddenly well up inside her. She could see it in his eyes that he was mocking her, belittling her, brushing her off like she was some annoying fly buzzing in his ear.

In a flash her hand clutched the edge of her massive fan ready to whip it out and blow away that smirk along with the surrounding buildings, consequences be damned.

"Stop it you two or I'll kill you both."

Immediately the siblings' arms went slack as they heard the raspy voice come from behind them.

There was whooshing noise, the sound of sand scraping against concrete announcing the arrival of third member of the team from the sand village.

The first thing the three opposing leaf genin noticed about the new arrival was the expression on her slightly rounded face that somehow managed to display utter indifference but at the same time lethal volatility, accentuated by the dark rings under her green eyes, a sure sign of sleep deprivation. The second was the giant gourd strapped to her back with a brown piece of cloth.

The color of her clothes reflected the nature of her homeland, an earthy brown bodysuit complimented by light tan patches sewn over the elbows and knees. Her hair was a dark red with bangs that hid what appeared to be tattoo on her forehead and fell down to the middle of her back, shaggy in a way similar to the blond across from her, who was currently scrutinizing her with a puzzled look.

"You seem . . . familiar." He finally said.

The girl glanced at the one staring at her and was almost instantly intrigued by the nearly tangible aura of blood and death that surrounded him. There was the smell of old burnt blood, almost completely hidden under by a neutral smelling body wash or cologne, but it was still there.

There was also a sort of another scent coming from him, something more primal and animal-like. Underneath her sand armor Gaara shivered, the smell made her nerves "spark" for lack of a better word and stirred up the foreign chakra that dwelled within her. Whoever he was, he was no stranger to death, and that was something she could appreciate.

Naruto's curiosity slightly subsided but remained plain on his face, "What is your name?"

"Gaara." She responded.

"Gaara, huh? You're entering the chunin exams?"

"Yes I am."

"Good, maybe we'll face each other."

There was an awkward moment descended upon the two as the two jinchuuriki eyed each other.

Then just as abruptly as it had started the encounter was over.

"Temari, Kankuro we're leaving." With that said the red head disappeared in whirl of sand.

The two remaining siblings we're quick to follow their sister's example but not before glaring at the blonde one last time.

"We'll meet again fishcake." Kankuro growled, although the word "fishcake" didn't come off as threatening as he would have liked.

"Gaara." Said Naruto experimentally rolling the word around his mouth looking in the direction the other group had departed.

Then he turned around and looked at the other members of his squad but at the same time looking past them.

"Konohamaru?"

The academy student perked up at the mention of his name, "Yes, Onii-chan?"

"Next time watch where you're going, I won't always be around to bail your ass out of trouble. By the way, where are your friends, snot nose and split hair?"

The energetic boy seemed deflated at the scorn but recovered at the mention of his friends, "I was heading towards the park to see them then. . . shit I'm late!"

Konohamaru broke into a dash heading down the street and disappeared in a brown blur around the corner after shouting, "Thanks for saving me Onii-chan!"

"I hate kids," the blue eyed male said sighing as he turned to face his team, "Come on I feel like training."

Without a word the Uchiha walked forward followed by the Haruno who after glancing behind her started to chatter mindlessly like the last three minutes had never occurred.

* * *

(Later On That Day, Sunset)

Gaara looked on indifferently as her siblings continued to vent their shared anger out on a training dummy, muttering to each other about how if they crossed paths with the blonde again and if they did, they would do this and that and then . . .

For the sand manipulator the rest of their words just became part of the background noise as it always did when she wasn't listening or when they just started talking in general. Either way her thoughts always seemed to return to the earlier encounter.

That boy, "Naruto", if that was really his name, had been using a subtle technique interwoven into his killing intent that inspired anger in his targets. Gaara essentially used the same technique to intensify the fear she struck in others, but the way he used could be just as effective if used correctly.

The intriguing part was that the "technique" wasn't really something that could be learned like a jutsu. She was sure a something similar could be learned and master, but what she used was something that simply a part of her, an extension of her youki laced chakra, so for someone else to do something similar meant . . .

"Mother" stirred from within her cage sending increasingly large waves of bloodlust from within crashing on the mental shores her host.

The red head pushed aside lingering thoughts of the stranger she had just met. What she needed right now was to find something with sweet life giving blood coursing through its veins and make it yield that liquid, preferably resisting while she did so.

* * *

(The Next Day)

Team Seven silently entered the exam building not bothering to pay attention to the other groups they passed and the nervous chatter they produced.

As they climbed Sasuke winced with every couple of steps. He was aware that taking the Chunin Exam was probably going to the toughest test of his life of his so far and the urgency in being prepared that it implied. But that didn't give his asshole of a teammate the right to beat him and pass it off as a "strengthening exercise". If hadn't been for the efficient work of the nurses from Konoha hospital his ribs would still be in pieces.

Speaking of their unofficial leader Sasuke turned his attention from actively ignoring the foreign genin that surrounded him to focusing on the more familiar one walking in front of him.

While normally many (by many he meant fangirls) would consider Sasuke the more enigmatic and the strongest of the three it was Naruto that was fit that description.

He had joined the academy halfway into the final year, roughly four months before the graduation exam and had promptly proceeded in establishing himself as the best.

It didn't take him long since worthy competition was scarce as there were few that could match his level of prowess; prowess that seemed to cover every area of the curriculum from taijustu to ninjutsu to genjutsu, and then some. The Uchiha had thought about challenging his fellow student to see how he himself stacked up against him. But after seeing Kiba, who being the dumb, competitive, hyperactive dogboy that he was, foolishly challenge "whisker boy" to a one and one duel and then get his ass torn apart in less than ten seconds flat, Sasuke reconsidered and decided to keep his distance.

From then on everyone avoided "whisker boy" like the plague although the avenger had seen him talk to others, like the quiet Hyuuga girl . . .

Being on the same team didn't change their relationship much. Sure they ocassionally talked, but it was never about anything concerning home life or their childhoods, just training and tardy Kakashi-sensei always was. Sasuke wasn't even sure where Naruto lived, but after a lot of research and asking around (stalking the blonde was just asking for trouble), Sasuke pinpointed his abode to either be an apartment on the west side of Konoha or the basement of a whorehouse in the north. His gut told Sasuke that it was the latter, although he had never personally went and found out for himself.

Despite his teammate's elusiveness the sharingan user had found out a few things through their shared interactions. He found out that Naruto had two sets of chakra, blue and red, something Sasuke had never seen before and was determined to investigate. The blonde had grown up an orphan; his mother had died during childbirth his father following soon after for reasons unknown. His favorite color was orange-like shade of red called "Hell's Blossom", his favorite food was rabbit stew, that or ramen. He was stronger than Sasuke, which the prodigy grudgingly had to admit after a few very painful spars resulting in twisted limbs and broken bones. On the flip-side however the Uzumaki seemed mildly fond of Sasuke, voicing his support upon hearing the avenger's homicidal goal.

Finally, and probably the most apparent facet of the blonde's personality besides his aggressiveness, was that he was sexist, plain and simple. Often he expressed that women should either be out on the battlefield seducing or killing men or in the kitchen making a sandwich, better yet in the bedroom, _with a sandwich_, waiting for her husband to come home.

This manifested itself in the way the blonde treated the only female member of their group, Sakura. He often could be seen telling her what to do, dictating how and when she trained, and telling her what to eat and such. He was the reason her long hair was in a bun though he had suggested it just be cut short to save time and future trouble.

Personally Sasuke felt mixed feelings on how Sakura was treated, but to his surprise and bewilderment she seemed be okay with it, as well as their sensei who just seemed indifferent to about everything that didn't concern his books or the end of life as they knew it.

But no matter his opinion Sasuke couldn't deny the results. Sakura was an all around better ninja than when they had begun, to the point she could give him a run for his money, though she acfed more submissive now more then ever, her fiery personality that she had been known for in the academy had taken a major blow, in addition to her obsession over the Uchiha, which was a nice turn around.

Still, the feeling of not having his every move shadowed and cooed at felt well . . . well it felt weird, and that's all he had to say on the matter. Her new habit of chatting nonstop about the most trivial things was annoying, but he could always tune that out with some effort.

Overall things had improved from what they were initially, but still he couldn't dispel the sense that something was off kilter, namely because Naruto was a bit more on edge then usual which was passed onto Sakura and somehow onto Sasuke himself. . .

"Look at those idiots tricked by a simple genjutsu."

Shaking his head Sasuke woke up from his daze to see Naruto gesturing at a hallway clogged full of chunin hopefuls all gathered around a door that was blocked by two older looking teenagers.

A blink later Sasuke reviewed the scene with his birthright activated searching for any form of deception.

After a moment of searching he found it, it wasn't too hard honestly; it was kind like playing that game where one had to find the guy in the striped shirt in a picture full of random objects.

The genjutsu had been placed so that the sign over the door where two older looking boys, who were actually two oddly familiar looking _men_, read 301 instead of 201.

The trick was overly simplistic if you asked Sasuke, but it got the job done if the crowd of genin surrounding the door was any indication.

"Come on we're taking the side stairs, let them waste there time standing there." said Naruto.

"But shouldn't we at least tell them about the trick?" Sakura asked glancing at the mob which was growing more and more rowdy.

The blonde reached out to gently stroke her jaw line causing her stiffen a bit, "Oh Sakura-chan, always so kindhearted. Do you really want such idiotic cannon fodder getting in our way down the road? If they can't see through such an obvious illusion then they don't even deserve to see my boot crush their naïve little faces."

Sakura looked conflicted but said nothing as Naruto withdrew his hand and proceeded back down the corridor.

A few moments later they were walking across an open area towards a staircase leading to a plain looking grey metal walkway.

They're plan to take the side route was proceeding without a hitch when suddenly, like cannon blast, a green blur shot forth from the edge of the walkway and launched itself, rapidly spinning like a child's spinning top, towards them.

Sasuke instantly activated his sharingan and jumped back along with Sakura, as they both anxiously watched as the blur hit the ground meters away, stop and then launch itself again, this time specifically at their teammate who stood unmoving, calmly waiting for the inevitable.

With the aid of his kekkei genkai Sasuke observed as the green specter with its oddly twisted chakra coils aimed a flying left overhand punch at the Uzumaki's neck.

The blow didn't connect; instead something happened that caused the Uchiha to gape in amazement.

Now the speed at which the attacker was moving was something he had only seen his Kakashi-sensei and his brother move at, suggesting that blocking was nigh impossible for a mere genin. But Naruto simply proved him wrong like he always did by palming the incoming fist with his right hand, stopping the strike completely with a loud smacking sound and then, ignoring his opponent's shocked expression that was just beginning to form, he followed the block up with a swipe of his left hand along his opponents chest, the force behind the swing great enough that it sent them flying towards the wall at the other end of the room.

The attack and subsequent counterattack had taken place in less then two seconds, so fast that if Sasuke had blinked he would have probably missed the entire exchange before the person wearing the green jumpsuit was sent flying.

Speaking of the jumpsuit wearer, they just narrowly avoided crashing into the wall headfirst by putting their feet forward and sticking to it, and were in the middle preparing for another acrobatic assault when a gust of wind slammed them into the concrete hard enough to leave a small crater.

The figure slumped to the ground managing to stay on their feet but from the looks of it they were still pretty dazed. In comparison Naruto hadn't moved from his place in the middle of the floor, his stance now more cocky than calm.

"By the way you fight you should know by now not to put your entire strength into the first blow. Or did you really expect to get me with that punch? Oh, I will give you credit for that Gai costume though, it's the most authentic I have ever seen. "

The attacker appeared to ignore the taunt while he looked down to examine his clothing which now had a rip across the torso area and small amount of blood dripping from the gash. To everyone surprise the stranger looked up, tears streaming down their face as they shouted:

"Ah! My suit is torn! How am going to explain this to Gai-sensei! I promised him that I would try my best to keep it unscathed! If I can't get this fixed before I see him again I will make two hundred more suits before the sunsets!

The jinchuuriki's face immediately tensed at the mention of "Konoha's Green Beast". "So you're Gai's other student? That explains everything. Did Neji send you?"

The stranger stopped their raving and looked seriously at the boy who had bested him, "No, Neji did not send me. His flames are not youthful and I would never follow his-"

He paused in the middle of his rant and blushed as his eye caught sight of the pink haired kunoichi standing behind the object of his yelling.

"Forgive me for being so rude! In my rush to vanquish evil I've forgotten my manners" he said with deep bow, "My name is Rock Lee! I am a student of the great Gai-sensei and member of Team Ten. May I ask your name fair maiden?'

Sakura in turn blushed but it was hidden from sight as Naruto protectively stood in front of her and growled deep and menacingly.

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto and I am in no shape or form a "fair maiden" as your injuries can attest. Now, if Neji didn't send you, why did you attack me? How did you know we'd come this way?"

Lee glared at the other male, "Any smart shinobi could recognize the trick in the hall for what it is! And no, Neji did not send me, but he did tell me tales of how unyouthful you are and I can see that he was right. After all, Gai-sensei said that unyouthful people attract other unyouthful people and his words always ring true! So, seeing that it is my duty to rid spread the world of youthfulness I took it upon myself to seek you out and try and make you see the error of your ways!"

Naruto cocked his head to the side like an exotic bird, "So you attacked me based on the word of your asshole teammate who you acknowledge is an asshole. Then based on that assumption you attacked a fellow ninja from your own village without any forewarning whatsoever. From what I can tell that doesn't sound very "youthful" or even sensible, now does it? Plus, Gai is an experienced ninja and by default he has lied on many, _many_ occasions."

Blood again rushed to Lee's cheeks, this time in embarrassment. Not only had he failed to strike down the unyouthful person standing before him, but he was also being belittled along with his honorable teacher by that same unyouthful person and right in front of a beautiful maiden, who he was sure, would prefer his company over her teammate's (not to mention help fix his jumpsuit). Gai-sensei would certainly not accept something like this and by default neither would his greatest admirer and student!

"And how would you know what being youthful means! You are clearly a scoundrel and a bad person who has no right to-"

"Quiet your tongue Lee! You are only making a fool of yourself and our team!"

Everyone on the floor looked up at the stairwell to see where the voice had originated.

Glaring down at everyone below with him with his byakugan causing the veins around his eyes to pop out stood a male Hyuuga with shoulder length brown hair with his arms crossed and standing next to him was a girl with a lighter shade brown hair done up in two buns, with a look of concern on her face.

"So you've finally decided to grace us with your presence and join the party, huh, Neji?"

The Hyuuga turned his head and focused his glare from his teammate briefly scowling at the Uchiha, before turning his angry gaze to the one who had spoken to him, who in return was still wearing the same cocky smile.

"What, nothing to say Neji-chan? Cat got your tongue? Maybe if you pulled that stick out your ass you might have a better time thinking of what to say? How about you go and run to Hiashi and maybe he'll help you out since you can't seem to do anything without his help?"

The fierce look intensified ten fold as the insults continued to flow forth as smoothly as butter spread across a hot slice of toast, but the Hyuuga did nothing further to physically express his anger.

Finally the visibly upset teen uncrossed his arms and turned his attention back to the Lee, "Come Lee you've wasted enough time playing with these fools."

"But-" Lee started to protest.

"I said now!"

Sending a final furious glance that promised their business was not finished the Maito Gai look alike jumped towards the walkway and landed on it in a single bound. The two boys turned and walked away but the girl turned and mouthed a quick "I'm sorry" before following her team.

The atmosphere on the ground level was tense as the two waited what the blonde was going to do next.

And finally he did do something. Flexing his right hand experimentally Naruto sighed as the sound of bones popping back into their respective joints filled the air.

"That moron really has taken after Gai."

Naruto stayed where he was persisting in putting his hand and wrist through various motions as he kept talking.

"As you may have guessed or picked up on Maito Gai is a jounin sensei like Kakashi, who leads the three you just met, Team Ten and specializes in taijutsu. The girl, Tenten I think her name is, is weapons master in training and other than her skills in throwing, wire work, wielding weapons and forging, she really isn't worth mentioning. Rock Lee, who so obviously wants to emulate his teacher that he imitates him down to his clothing, specializes _heavily_ in the taijutsu taught to him by Gai, as his condition makes forming chakra for any other purpose including ninjutsu, genjutsu and so on, impossible. His single minded nature combined with his mental _need_ to emulate his hero and the desire to prove himself to world makes him an extremely dangerous opponent for anyone unprepared." He showed his bruised left hand to drive his point home.

"Finally there's Hyuuga Neji."

The jinchuuriki stopped testing his wrist as he spat out the name with clear contempt.

"He's a branch member of the Hyuuga clan, which you've probably have heard of, meaning his training compared to someone from the main branch is limited. Despite these limitations he is probably one of the most gifted Hyuuga born in generation, his natural talent all but unmatched. However he is an asshole, a bitter asshole, who sucks cock and when he isn't out blocking it, and definitely the strongest member of Team Ten. If you ever encounter him or Lee without me around, I suggest you run, plain and simple. Do you understand me?"

Both teens nodded dumbly at him, they had seen him serious before, but never this serious, not since their mission to the wave.

"Any questions?"

Sakura raised her hand, years of learning at the academy urging her to do so. "How do you know Maito Gai and Neji? It sounds like you've met them before."

Naruto chuckled at the question, "You could say that Hyuuga prick and I have history of bad blood between us. Same goes for Gai. Before I joined the academy he was one of my tutors and we have never gotten along. Now come on the exam has probably begun."

* * *

(Across The Village)

Kakashi leaned forward as he tried to snatch the black cat from its perch on the tree branch.

"You be careful with Mr. Sunshine now young man. He can be a grouch when he doesn't have his lunch."

"Don't worry ma'am I will, I can be a bit irritated if I don't eat either."

The jounin was so distracted by thoughts of the old woman he was helping, who reminded him so much of his own grandmother, Kami rest her sweet old soul, that he didn't realize how close his hand was in proximity to the cat.

With a hiss the feline's head darted forward and sank its sharp teeth into his hand.

Kakashi swore and withdrew his hand in a flash and thanks to his blind spot created by his cover eye was unaware that the book he carried in one of his many vest pockets came free and fell to the ground landing in a puddle until it was too late. He snatched the cat roughly by the collar causing it to yowl and he leaped off the tree.

When he landed, instead of the kind words of thanks he expected to receive, he received a sharp whack to the head courtesy of elderly woman and her dastardly wooden cane.

"That's for hurting for Mr. Sunshine and reading such trash." She said pointing to the book in the puddle.

Huffing the old woman turned around and went about her business, stroking her Mr. Sunshine and muttering about "how society going down hill and whatnot."

"Well I was always more a dog person anyway!" He yelled after her. In response she gave him the finger causing surrounding eyebrows to rise.

The war veteran forlornly looked at his book soaking up dirty rain water and sighed while he picked it up. The pages were soaked, the words blurred and the spine ruined. He might as well have picked up the wet pages of an erotic newspaper discarded without a care.

"This is not a good sign."

* * *

I've written down dozens of half finished first chapters of stories that most likely I'll never finish and this is one of four that kind of caught on with me. It starts cannonish but diverges pretty soon. Chances are this will be a harem fic, likely a small one, I haven't fully decided yet, but be prepared for anything I might throw in, including some yaoi elements. If that doesn't suit your interest then I suggest you try and hang on, if it does then stay. But either way leave a review, it motivates me!


	2. Chapter 2

(Konoha's Ninja Academy, The Auditorium)

The room felt cramped with the large number of people in it who supplied the rank smell of anxiety and impatience underlined by a subtle current of killing intent.

What was worse was that all of eyes seemed to be directed right at her adding to the unease she felt. She tried to calm herself by brushing it off as paranoia mixed with stage fright, after all she was an amateur among strangers who were willing to slash her throat if given the opportunity, or at least she presumed it to be the case considering why they were all here.

But just as her explanation started solidify and give her comfort, she turned and saw an older looking genin with a scar spanning the width of his chin look her up and down then slowly lick his lips which were upturned in a lecherous grin.

Sakura quickly averted her gaze and focused it on the broad shoulders of the boy standing in front taking in the suspicious stares without any outward sign of fear. In fact he seemed to absorb the general wave of malice and convert it into confidence.

"_He seems to fit right in with the rest of them. If he were to step into the mob I wouldn't be able to find him"_

From deep within her mind, Sakura heard a familiar voice whisper.

"_**That's right! He's just like them, a monster in sheep's clothing waiting until we're alone and helpless so he can take advantage of us. It's already happened before, we both know it. Remember the glowing red eyes, the claws, pain-"**_

"_When are you talking about? I don't remember that."_

"_**Oh. You don't remember, huh? Or did you just pass it off as a nightmare? He might have fooled you but he can't fool me! Here let me you help you remember . . ."**_

Without warning Sakura felt herself enveloped in darkness, the exam room seeming all but a distant memory.

* * *

_Pungent smells assaulted her nose making her eyes water. Somewhere beyond her range of vision people were screaming and shouting in what could have been pain or jubilation. Sakura struggled to clear her head of the mental fog enveloping it but her attempts were evaded and caused her head throb in pain. _

_She turned trying to find an exit but all she saw were glowing red eyes peering down on her. Eyes that couldn't or rather shouldn't belong to a human being, but that didn't prevent the tall figure from coming closer, unseen hands gripping her shaking shoulders, sharp claws sinking into her pale flesh. _

_She tried to scream but she felt something hot and moist clamp down the side of her throat, paralyzing her in its eagerness to devour all that she was. To her horror she realized it was mouth, lips rough and chapped, sharp teeth eagerly nipping at her jugular hard enough to nearly draw blood._

_Then the mouth drew back and before she could cry out in relief she felt herself pushed down onto the cold hard ground. _

_Again the inhuman eyes swallowed her in their slitted crimson and black depths, ruthlessly scouring her soul and mind without mercy. _

_Alone in the dark and without friends, Sakura whimpered miserably._

_

* * *

_

**"Stop it! Stop it! Stop it! None of that was real! It was all in my head just like you are! Leave me alone!"**

After a brisk shake of her head the pink haired girl successfully banished the voice and the images it summoned.

Sighing in relief Sakura looked up and was confused to see everyone staring at her, and not in a way where she could just pass it off as nervousness, but _actually _staring right at her.

The nervous kunoichi heard rather than saw the Uchiha shuffle behind her then place his hand on her shoulder.

"Umm Sakura . . . are you alright?"

She was too mortified to properly reply. Instead she lowered her head and muttered something akin to "Yes" while desperately hoping that someone in the crowd would take the chance and slit her throat right then and there or at the very least knock her unconscious.

"_Great now everyone thinks I'm crazy and I can't completely disagree. . ."_

Suddenly the entire room was filled with smoke eliciting more than a couple coughs from its occupants in addition to some panic.

When the smoke cleared, at the back of the room stood a group of at least fifteen adults all decked out shinobi gear and wearing headbands with the leaf insignia stenciled on them.

The ninja in front, who also happened to the tallest of the group, menacing looking with scars covering most of his craggy face and dressed in all black, opened his mouth filling the room with a rough baritone, "Alright you little shit stains, shut the hell up ! The Chunin Exam is about to begin!"

The crowd already quiet due to the pink haired girl's outburst and then stunned by the sudden appearance, quietly did what they were told, settling down where they were and waited for what the man would say next.

"First off, while I explain the rules, there will be no talking; you may ask questions only when I say you can. Speak out of turn and you run the risk of being disqualified."

"Now form three lines and grab a ticket from one of these three people then go the seat with the same number as on the piece of paper," he pointed at trio of chunin besides him holding slips of a paper. "Once you've all sat down in your assigned seats I will explain further what's going to happen next. Any questions?"

There were some coughs but no questions.

"Alright then line up and make it quick."

The genin scrambled into three hastily made lines. Now that their initial fear was over they started to mutter, low at first but steadily increasing in volume. After they had gotten their tickets and seated themselves, the man in black surveyed them for a bit then began speaking, this time not as loud but not as intimidating.

"My name is Morino Ibiki and I will be the proctor for this part of the Chunin Exam. The entire exam is broken into three parts, this obviously being the first. This part of the exam will consist of a written test that will assess your knowledge concerning the shinobi arts, tactical skill, and possible combat scenarios and so on. Soon test sheets will distributed. You will not start until I tell you to do so."

The rustle of papers, more muttering from the test takers, surveying on behalf of the interrogator and the deed was done.

"Now here's how it's going," Said Ibiki pulling out of piece of chalk and scribbling on the blackboard behind him. "Each of you will start with ten points to start with, each question being worth one point. There are nine questions are on the test, the tenth will be given at the end. For each question you get wrong you will be deducted one point. Ten wrong answers equates to a loss of ten points and immediate disqualification. However since this is a teammate effort, if one of your teammates fails, so do you as a a team."

Now that got the mob talking!

"Shut up! Ibiki roared, though he seemed to be hiding a smile. "The point of this test is to see if you, as a team, can manage to hang on to as many points as possible. One more thing, if you are caught cheating or anything deemed as suspicious then you will be docked two points. The chunin here," he gestured at the men and women around him, "are here to keep an eye on you. This test will end at eleven o' clock sharp, exactly one hour from now. You may begin . . . now!"

Sakura's head dipped immediately, her mind shutting out the outside world while her eyes scanned the page lying in front of her, automatically dismissing the questions she didn't know, which evidently turned out to be a hefty amount, seven out of the nine to be exact.

"_Question Six: You are lying in a field of tall grass with one shuriken left in your weapons pouch. Your throwing skills and arm strength are average. Standing fifteen feet east of you is an enemy shinobi who is unaware of your presence. If the grass is two feet tall and the wind is blowing southeast at ten miles per hour, what is probability of you severing their vertebral artery? Include any and all calculations and diagrams you are going to use to solve this problem."_

The girl blinked in surprise.

What kind question was that! There was no way that an ordinary genin could answer these! Sure she had a shot since she spent most her academy days studying, but the run of the mill genin stood no chance.

The kunoichi born to civilian parents looked around her trying to keep her roaming gaze as subtle as possible.

To her far right she spotted the Hyuuga girl from her class. Hinata was name if her memory was correct, with her head down and pencil laid flat on the table. From the looks of it the veins around her eyes were bulging, unnatural no matter what angle one viewed it from.

Sakura glared and unconsciously gritted her teeth. Whether it was on the street or a situation like this, people with a kekkei genkai, specifically a doujutsu, always seemed to be treated better or had an advantage in some way. Months ago she wouldn't have noticed, but now it just irritated her to know to no end.

Speaking of people with doujutsu . . . Sakura looked around searching for her dark haired teammate, but to her disappointment he didn't seem to be in her line of sight, not so surprising considering her assigned seat was near the front of the auditorium turned classroom.

As part of one of nervous habits Sakura scratched the small scars on the back of her arms, scars that were relatively fresh but she couldn't remember where she got them. Had she been attacked by a cat? Tora maybe?

Her intense examination of her limbs unintentionally drew the attention of one of the chunin overseers standing in front of her. He nodded his head and smirked, checking off something on his clipboard, probably her name.

Despite the fact that his intentions were probably good, Sakura couldn't help but unwillingly shiver upon seeing the brief show of teeth.

"_**You never know, he might be planning something. Watch, he's wringing his hands together. Always watch out for the hands-" **_

With a mental shove Sakura forced the voice back into the dark corner from whence it came. She didn't need such distractions when she could practically feel the sands of time spill from between her fingers.

"_One wrong answer means losing one point, and being caught cheating means losing two. Why make the test a team effort, but make the test itself so damn difficult. And what's with all the chunin staring at us. It's almost like the whole point is to cheat . . ." _

Sakura's head snapped upwards, the dawning of an epiphany clear in her wide open eyes.

That was it! The whole point of the exam was to test their skills at gathering information without being caught! It was one of the main objectives of being a shinobi and was the one of the first things taught when academy students started classes! How had she not realized that before!

Now that that piece of the puzzle had been found, another problem confronted the young kunoichi. How in the world was she supposed to cheat without being caught? She didn't have any special advantage like a kekkei genkai, and she didn't have any tools with her that could be of any use.

Hold on, maybe she did have something on her.

Discreetly as she could possibly manage, Sakura made it appear as if she were scratching her head in concentration but when she withdrew her hand a small steel needle was nestled in the palm of her hand. She had originally kept it as a souvenir from her mission in the Wave and as inspiration to someday actually learn how to use it as a weapon, but today it would serve other uses.

Actually concentrating this time, Sakura put both hands together quickly forming seals using the senbon as focusing point and with a mutter she felt herself surrounded by one of the many genjutsu she had picked up over months of training.

She leaned back with a contented sight, but her face remained a bit strained from focus needed to keep up technique. With the illusion up she was free to do whatever she wanted without anyone noticing, in theory at least, since she had never actually tried it "out in the field".

She glanced at the calm looking boy wearing a leaf hiate sitting next to her, happily scribbling away, oblivious of the look that rested on him and his paper.

Maybe if she was lucky she could find a way to share her answers her answers with Sasuke, not that she thought he would have any trouble figuring it the point of the test his own way, he _was _Uchiha Sasuke after all, but it was better to be safe than sorry as her mother always said. Then maybe afterwards he would thank her, and ask her out on a date and they would go to the movies and talk about whatever came to mind, whether it be how lazy Kakashi was, how D-ranked missions sucked or plans for marriage . . .

"_He'll hold my hand smile at me and I'll ruffle his bright yellow hair and we'll both laugh . . ."_

Sakura nearly lost control of illusion she was maintaining when she caught her mental slip up, but swiftly recovered although her train of thought was now racing down a very different track.

"_Sasuke doesn't have blonde hair, Naruto does, but why am I thinking of him? I want Sasuke not Naruto, however handsome he may be." _

Just like the last thought this one slipped out unbidden and as hard as she tried to dismiss it she was forced to agree.

Her teammate was attractive.

While her crush was distant, brooding and a bit "unstable" at times, Naruto was open (at least far more than Sasuke), warm, and enjoyed life though in an decidedly aggressive manner. Plus he paid attention to her and helped her with her training whenever he could, something Sasuke never approached her with.

There were times though when he made her uncomfortable, repelled her even, like when he sometimes invaded her personal space or how his hand was always there to "accidentally" grazed her rump when she bent over to pick up something.

Once he had outright groped her and she had whipped her body around and decked him. He seemed surprised at first but then apoligized seeing the look in her eyes and how kept flicking in the direction of their sensei in warning. He got the message, from then on never directly touching inappropriately, but there were always excuses when he passed a bit too close and brushed against her.

_**"He's a monster just waiting to eat us up! Just wait and see!"**_

She scowled as the voice urgently shouted its message and again the girl on the outside had to suppress the one within. She didn't need distractions; she could let her thoughts wonder in her free time. Right now she needed to finish the test and find a way to communicate with her teammate.

With that thought firmly in place she focused with all her will power on the task at hand and turned her attention back to the boy sitting next to her.

The moment he had sat down next to her Sakura had become suspicious of him. Maybe it was the gray hair that reminded her a bit of her Kakashi-sensei. Maybe it was how his round glasses had barely hidden the bored expression on his face as he was confronted with the test. Maybe it was the mildly predator-like grin that formed on his face as he now turned to face her.

"Why hello there! I never thought I'd meet another who knew this genjutsu, let alone have the control to perform it." He licked his manicured fingers and smoothed over his eyebrows, which looked recently plucked.

Immediately her internal voice howled in alarm, _**"Stay away from him! His smile! His hands! His teeth! Stay away! Stay away!"**_

For the first time in what felt like an eternity Sakura was in complete agreement with her inner voice. Something about the boy sitting next to her screamed danger, not outright danger, but a subtler, slithering kind of menace, definitely not of the genin variety.

"What aren't you are going to say anything? Don't tell me you've got stage fright."

As much as the pink haired girl wished to follow her instincts and flee right then and there, she simply couldn't, so she chose to make the best of what life had given her.

"N-no, you just surprised me."

"Well I guess I can understand. You put yourself under a genjutsu, thinking you're all safe and sound, and then out of nowhere a strange guy starts talking to you. By the way my name is Yakushi Kabuto." He stuck out his hand in a friendly gesture.

She was hesitant to complete the handshake but forced herself to do so. The feel of it was a tad clammy, corpse-like even, possibly due to poor circulation.

"I'm Haruno Sakura."

"Well Sakura-chan, may I call you Sakura-chan? What a pretty name you have. What do you think of the test so far? I couldn't help notice you looking at my paper."

"I think it's kind of hard." She said blushing a little at the compliment, again glancing at his paper, "But apparently I'm just dumb."

Kabuto chuckled, "Oh, that. Well I've taken the chunin exam before, five times in fact, and it always the same formula. A written test with some hidden agenda, followed by some sort of survival test to weed out any leftovers and finally a Battle Royale at the stadium. It gets boring after awhile."

Sakura's eyes narrowed in suspicion and her blush evaporated, "Well if the exam is so easy, why aren't you a chunin yet?"

The older male didn't seem fazed by this question, "Oh just a combination of bad luck, lack of preparation mixed with a pinch of procrastination. But I feel this year might be different. What about you, have you taken the exam before?"

"No this is my first time taking it." She reluctantly admitted.

Kabuto seemed surprised at her answer, "Hmmm, you seem a bit young to be taking the exam, how long have been a genin? How many missions have you completed?"

Her face became flushed in response to his question. "Five months, twenty D-rank missions and one C-rank, but technically turned out to be A-rank." She quickly added the last part in a desperate attempt to try and cover up her clear lack of experience.

This time around the older male actually did raise his eyes in surprise, "_Five months and one C-rank_ _mission_? Most genin wait a year before taking the exam or at least until you must have more experience, you must be very strong."

Sakura's blush intensified, "Actually it was our sensei's idea to take the exam . . . I'm not very strong at all."

Kabuto smiled again this time putting a bit of charm into it, "Why of course you're strong. The genjutsu you're using right now is proof of that. You're sensei obviously has faith in you and so must your teammates."

"My teammates," she started to say, but then paused. She suddenly realized that she was currently in the middle of a test to measure her skills in gathering information, yet here she was giving away personal information for essentially what could be a crock of lies and petty compliments, and to a creep no less. She shivered at the scolding her team, especially Naruto, would give her if they ever found out.

"_**Everyone's is a liar, you can't trust anyone. Not this snake in the grass or **_Naruto."

"Sakura, are you alright?"

Sakura blinked then smiled. If this stranger wanted to play games, then so would she. After all, it takes two to tango.

"Yeah I'm alright, I just lost focus for a second, happens a lot to me. I forgot to ask, but how are you talking to me," she lifted an arm and gestured at the busy people surrounding them, "I'm supposed to be hidden."

The grey haired teen smiled smugly, "As you know Sakura-chan, genjutsu works by one person using their chakra to influence the sensory perception of their target making them see what isn't there or making them see more than what is there, etc, etc. What you may or may not have realized is that genjutsu is a two way street. Since your chakra is entering another person, that person with the appropriate skill level, theoretical knowledge and chakra control can detect that foreign presence and instead of dispelling it, actually _reverse_ it back on the caster. From there the former victim can use other genjutsu or techniques without that other person realizing it until it's potentially too late."

"Take now this situation for example. You attempted to net me in your illusion, but I, knowing the particular genjutsu inside and out in addition to having pretty good control of my chakra, reversed it and layered on another genjutsu on top. So instead of you being concealed from outsides as you may think, I'm the one concealed from you and from an outsiders point of view you're talking to yourself. Not so far fetched considering the show you put on earlier. I'm surprised they haven't thrown you yet."

Sakura reeled back in horror, frantically looking around her before clasping her hands together in the ram seal and was an instant away from trying to break the supposed deception that surrounded her.

However, this was not meant to be as a hand grabbed her wrists, mashing them together and with a pulse of energy, disrupted the rush of chakra about to flash through her coils.

Team Seven's sole female member yelped in shock and a bit of pain, and then to her bewilderment she heard laughter.

She turned to look at a chuckling Kabuto.

"Sorry about that Sakura-chan," he said wiping a tear from his eye, "I'm just messing with you. I felt your technique surround me so I broke it, and then recast it around the both of us. I really don't get to mess with newbies like that often."

Sakura glared fiercely once she comprehended his little trick and without warning slammed her right fist his into his shoulder, hard.

The punch had the intended effect as the glasses wearer winced and clutched his shoulder, where no doubt a bruise would form.

"Ouch! What the hell, I said I was sorry!"

She didn't say anything instead continuing to form the ram seal and promptly broke the illusion.

To her relief, what Kabuto had said was true and no one seemed to have noticed the exchange. With a grunt, she ignored pale hand that poked hers and returned to her test paper, which was almost completely empty.

Ten seconds after the tip of her pencil hit paper she heard a voice boom throughout the room.

"Alright kiddies, pencils down! It's time for the tenth question."

Then the shattering of glass could be heard and again the room filled with smoke.

/

(Half An Hour Later, Hokage's Tower)

"You wanted to see me Hokage-sama."

"Why yes I did Kakashi. Come, take a seat."

The former Anbu captain did as he was told and marveled at how little the office seemed to have changed over the years. There were minute changes new paint on the walls, different books lined shelves on both sides of the room and the desk the Hokage sat at appeared fairly new but from what he could tell it was the same make as its predecessor.

Kakashi could easily replace his current self with a younger version, eagerly awaiting his next set of orders. The nostalgia he experienced was just that potent.

Shit, now he felt old.

"So Kakashi, how is being a teacher treating you?"

The jounin woke up from his brief period of self pity and contemplation, his single eye slightly narrowing. If the Hokage really wanted to make small talk he wouldn't have sent a messenger, he would have just waited until they happened to meet up during or after a mission debriefing. What the aging leader of Konoha doing was an classic ploy to gradually cause Kakashi's guard to drop. The worst part was the old man wasn't even trying to hide his attempt, meaning things were really bad.

Feigning ignorance, the son of "Legendary White Fang" decided to play along, scratching his head as if nothing were out of place. "So far so good Hokage-sama."

Or it could be that the Hokage _actually_ did want to make small talk. The paranoia associated with being a hired assassin could really screw a person up.

"The kids are alright, they put up with my tardiness pretty well, they don't complain . . . much and they're eager to learn, sometimes a bit _too eager_ if you ask me."

Hiruzen raised an eyebrow, "Explain."

"Well Sasuke, being the self proclaimed avenger that he is, predictably wants to know every jutsu he can get his hands, so he can kill his brother. On the other hand, Naruto's goal is, umm, err . . ."

"What is his goal Kakashi?"

Kakashi again stretched the back of his head, this time at a lost for words.

"To tell you the truth, I'm not really sure what his goal is. Back when I was assigned to teach him as a boy he was full of energy yelling about how he was going to become the strongest so everyone would respect him, as you may remember. Nowadays however, he just seems to want to get stronger without less emphasis on the "gain respect" part. He's like Sasuke without the avenger persona except he retains that same appetite for destruction. For now he's satisfied with ripping apart the training grounds during training but frankly I'm a little nervous to teach him anything more since he seems to soak everything up like a sponge and I'm not sure what he'll do once he's bored with wanton demolition. And the way he treats Sakura is also something of issue."

The leader of the Sarutobi clan leaned forward, ears perked up in interest.

"When I first passed the Team Seven, Sakura was, for lack of a better word, a fangirl. She'd follow Sasuke around like a love sick puppy. I expected this after reading over her file but actually seeing in motion was a bit offsetting. She reminded me of strongly of Rin. So seeing the potential she was wasting chasing after Sasuke I tried to appeal to her interests, mainly genjutsu, medical jutsu and trying to impress her precious _Sasuke-kun._ She took the bait, but with not with as much enthusiasm as I had initially hoped.

"After that things went smoothly. The team worked together, none of them complained more then usual. Overall I had no complaints either. Then we went on that C-rank mission and things . . . _changed_." Kakashi lingered on the last word, unsure of a synonym he could use in place of it.

"Ah yes, Team Seven's mission to Wave Country," Hiruzen said with a light chuckle pulling out a thick folder from within his desk, "The one that turned from C-rank to A-rank, yet not on one occasion was back up sent for or requested, even though your team was grossly inexperienced and you faced an undetermined amount of powerful enemies."

The Hatake was weary of his superior's jovial tone. As his father once said "Jovial behavior sometimes spells danger." When he was younger the thought the phrase seemed ridiculous but over the years the unofficial adage had proven itself over repeatedly

"And as I recall I have yet to properly punish you on you're rather unprofessional behavior."

"In my defense sir-"

"However," the Hokage interrupted, "I'm willing to put that aside for now. Please, continue what you were saying."

Kakashi wasn't sure what to make of his seemingly good stroke of luck so he took a second to recall where he was, "It was like a switch being turned off causing another to turn on. One day Sakura is trying to get Sasuke's attention, and then after a couple of days after Zabuza was defeated she's after Naruto. Except, she's not physically chasing after him, but sort of being drawn to him and in return he lavishes attention on her, never letting her out of his sight. He even goes as far as telling her what to do, even suggesting that she pin her hair up in a bun, and oddly enough she willingly goes along with it."

"Naturally I was curious and a bit disturbed at the change in behavior and questioned them both, Sakura then Naruto. Sakura didn't have much to say, she just kept on muttering how she wants to get stronger. Naruto was even more cryptic. When I asked him, he just smiled that certain smile only he can manage, you know that one where his canines are out and he looks like a fox. Then he looks me in the eye and tells me "not to worry, things are taken care". After that I asked Sasuke, who also noticed the change, but unfortunately was just as clueless as I was."

"But as much as I hate to admit it whatever happened has changed things for the better. Sakura takes Naruto's advice, meaning that she's no longer on any of those so called "diets" in order to impress Sasuke, and she pays more attention and trains harder. Naruto has calmed down a bit since his time is being eaten up looking after Sakura. Sasuke too, ironically enough, is training harder too since he sees Naruto as a stepping stone on his quest to kill Itachi and I think is her;s jealous of him for "stealing" Sakura away, though he'll never openly admit it. As a team they work well together but there could be trouble in the future considering the boy's backgrounds in addition to their personalities, but I have faith things will iron themselves out."

Kakashi took a deep breath, his tale finally done.

"What do Sakura's parents think of these developments in their daughter?"

"I haven't seen the two since we've returned from Wave Country so I'm not sure, though I'm positive they must have noticed something is different about her."

Silence followed his answer. The jounin used this absence to launch his attack.

"Excuse me sir, but why the sudden interest in my team, if I may ask?"

The Hokage eyed his subordinate carefully, hidden emotions flashing across the veteran's eyes as a mental war was waged.

Finally the aging leader sighed, flashing through a couple hand signs activating the sound proofing seals Kakashi knew to be hidden behind the walls. Then he stood up and gazed out of the window overlooking the village thoughtfully chewing on his pipe.

"I have reason to believe that Orochimaru has managed to sneak his way into the Chunin Exam disguised as a genin. I also have reason to believe that he is here for Sasuke, or his sharingan eyes to be more precise. Furthermore, I have information pointing towards the conclusion that he also plans to invade Konoha within the near future, most likely during the last portion of the exam a month from now."

Needless to say Kakashi was left speechless upon hearing the news, though that wasn't exactly correct. He did in fact try to speak but no words could express how he felt without him sounding like a babbling idiot. So instead he chose to keep his mouth shut and herd his frantic thoughts and emotions back where he could watch over them.

"How long have you known about Orochimaru's plans Hokage-sama?" He chose to ask.

"Four days."

The jounin was ready to verbally explode as another multitude of questions assaulted his mind. Within seconds he managed to distill a few core questions from the rest, the ones he simply had to have an answer to. Why hadn't the Hokage told him sooner, so he could not enter his team? Why wasn't the entire exam called off? What precautions were being taken? How large was the invading force? Where did he get this information? Who gave it to him? The list went on and on but again Kakashi temporarily kept silent as he attempted to see things from the Hokage's point of view. It was difficult, but he could see a rough picture starting to form.

"I see you're putting thought into this Kakashi. Allow me to answer some of the questions that you undoubtedly want to ask."

"I received all my information from Jiraya, who you know to be trustworthy and Konoha's greatest asset in terms of information gathering on other countries. About two months ago while tracking down Orochimaru he discovered that my former student had started his own hidden village in Rice Country, although from his reports it is closer to a personal task force made up of followers he's gained over the years and missing nin who he has given sanctuary. Jiraya wanted to investigate further and I gave him my permission as well as sending two Anbu to assist him."

"Due to difficulties he was delayed about a month into his investigation and was unable to contact me until about a week ago. Unfortunately the Anbu I sent perished sacrificing themselves. Even if he had managed to reach me as soon as possible, canceling the chunin exam still would've out of the question, because it is an international event and Konoha cannot afford to lose face or arouse the suspicions of other countries."

"And what about my students?"

"Precautions have been put in place, namely I've assigned a couple of Anbu to watch out for your pupils throughout the entire exam. In addition, if Orochimaru manages to slip past them there is one more person standing between him and your team, someone on the inside taking the exam."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow in curiosity.

"_Someone taking the exam and able to fend off one of a Sanin? That's impossible! No genin should stand a chance, unless rank is just a formality . . . Hold on! He can't mean-"_

"That's right Naruto." Said Hiruzen looking at the look of epiphany dawning on Kakashi's face, "It may not seem like it but he can formidable."

"But sir while I admit Naruto does have massive potential, even at his peak he can't be more than a jounin in terms of overall skill, he'll be no match for Orochimaru."

The Sandaime shook his head, "You're forgetting Kakashi that Naruto doesn't have to defeat Orochimaru. All he has to do is hold him off until help arrives. Plus even if he is lacking in experience and skill he has the Kyuubi to draw upon.

"But sir, are you sure that's a good idea What if it backfires and the Kyuubi takes over?"

The God of Shinobi smiled in response, "You probably don't know this but Naruto has been training with a special operative under me command since he joined your team in order to control the Kyuubi shakra. And from what I've seen he's improving by leaps and bounds."

The usually lazy jounin wanted to raise his voice in protest but he didn't have any more points to he come up with. Besides, from the looks of things everything seemed to have already been decided concerning his team.

"Is the council aware of the invasion? What about defensive measures? How large is the attacking force? Do we have enough shinobi to repel them? What about preemptive measures? Is Jiraya here in the village? Is he helping us?"

"The shinobi council is aware while the civilian part is not. Defensive measures are being taken care, don't worry about you'll be integrated into it once the second part of the chunin exam is over. From what Jiraya has told me, and yes he is helping prepare for the invasion, the attacking force is not that large although we aren't exactly sure at this point. In terms of a preemptive strike, it's being thought of, but right now were trying to keep our knowledge of the invasion secret, so if there is going to be one it's probably going to be right before the invasion takes place."

"Sooooo, it seems everything's been taken care of." Kakashi said, his one visible eye turning upwards into a lackadaisical smile, something only he was seemingly able to do.

"Pretty much. But remember to stay on your toes Kakashi, look out for anything suspicious. It may seem peaceful now but war will soon be upon us."

"Damn I hate my job sometimes." The scarecrow said sighing.

"Me too Kakashi. Me too. . ."

* * *

There you have it! Chapter two released within a week of the first! Now review and tell me what you think.

Q: What's wrong with Sakura?

A: She's going crazy. The reason why will be revealed or at least hinted at in the next few chapters.

Q: Will Naruto face Orochimaru?

A: Yes, with surprising results.

Q: Is the invasion going to happen?

A: You'll see.


	3. Chapter 3

_(Flashback, Seven years and half years ago)_

_Sarutobi sighed as he rubbed the bridge of his nose in frustration and subsequently winced in pain at his actions._

_For The God of Shinobi rubbing the bridge of his nose was his way of signaling his agitation, one of the few ways that he physically conveyed the emotions that he mostly kept internal and one of the few tendencies that he couldn't suppress entirely, no matter how hard he tried. _

_Normally this wouldn't be such was problem, but due to the great period of aggravation that had befallen him over the past few months the frequency of his seemingly innocuous habit had had increased ten fold, to the point that his nose was constantly raw, except for brief periods of time when it healed over, only for it's condition to reverse itself as he was assailed by another grievance that demanded his attention. _

_Smoking, too, was one of the few habits he couldn't kick, and, along with his nose rubbing, had also seen an increase in frequency in execution. The ceramic ashtray sitting in front of him overflowing with cinders and powdery residue was evidence enough, as well as his worsening cough, which had started out occurring only occasionally and as merely a small occasional discomfort but was now frequent and becoming painful to bear. _

_Unfortunately for the current Hokage, his day had taken a turn for the worse as his secretary informed him through the intercom that one of the reasons for his present and slowly deteriorating condition was on its way up the stairs and would be in his office in a matter of seconds._

_With a quick motion the old man dumped the contents of the ashtray in the trashcan beneath his desk and took the remaining time to rub his nose again and say a small prayer to whatever Kami that was willing to listen, that they bestow the strength upon him to make it through another day._

"What a drag it is getting old."_ Hiruzen thought to himself._

_A knock at the door signaled the end of his prayer and after a curt "Come in", the door opened and a man stepped through followed by a small boy. _

_The man was of a medium build and height, had tanned skin, and was wearing the standard vest among chunins, complete with baggy dark blue pants and sandals of the same color. The feature that immediately drew people's attention was the scar that spanned horizontally across his nose, starting in the middle of one cheek and ending at the middle of the other . He seemed to be rather agitated unlike his young blond companion, who hopped excitedly up and down in his khaki shorts and plain white shorts. His face had thin whisker marks on the cheeks reminiscent of a fox and at the moment was grinning with barely restrained joy._

"_Hey Oji-san! How's it going!" the boy shouted, loud enough to cause both adults to consider covering their ears._

"_Pretty good Naruto," the Hokage lied, "How about you? You've been on your best behavior since we last met, right?"_

_The boy's smile faltered a bit taking on a sheepish quality while he rubbed the back of his head, "Um . . . well . . . Hey! Did I tell you about how I got the highest score throwing shuriken and kunai?"_

"_That's very good Naruto-kun, but that doesn't answer my question."_

"_Well you see Oji-san-"_

"_I can answer that question Hokage-sama." interrupted the man, speaking for the first time, "You see Naruto-kun here got into a scuffle with a group of students and ended up breaking a couple noses and giving a couple of them some nasty scrapes. Among the students involved were Hyuuga Hinata and Neji."_

"_So what? They were saying bad things about me and I'm stronger then them!" yelled the blue eyed lad defending himself._

"_Now Naruto you know you shouldn't hit girls," the Hokage scolded._

"_But she's the one who started it! Besides, why should girls get special treatment? Don't say cooties because I know they're not real."_

"_Well talk about that later. Did he do anything else Iruka?"_

_Iruka's voice and expression suddenly turned serious, "Why yes he did Hokage-sama. After the fight, I sent him back to the classroom to knock the dust out of all the erasers while I checked on the injured students. However, when I got back, he was gone and afraid that he would get into further trouble I asked a fellow teacher, Mizuki, to act as my replacement while I looked for Naruto."_

"_Fortunately it didn't take me long to find him. On the downside however, when I did find him I discovered that he had gotten into fight with some civilians. Apparently Naruto here took some rocks and broke a couple of shop windows."_

"_They started it first! They called me names too and-"_

"_Enough Naruto!" yelled the Hokage with a surprising amount of force and leaking a small amount of killing intent, enough to not only make the young boy shut his mouth in a hurry but also causing the man standing next to him to unconsciously take few steps back out of fear. _

_The aging leader took a deep breath and scowled as he realized the unwanted impact his outburst had on two. "Iruka, would you please leave me and Naruto alone? I'm sure you're wanted back at the academy."_

"_H-Hai Hokage-sama." With that said the chunin any turned to leave, giving his student a look that could interpreted as sympathy mixed with a pinch of worry, but he didn't have a track record of showing any pity towards the boy. _

"_Naruto?"_

"_Y-Yes Hokage-sama?" replied Naruto fearfully._

"_Would you like to take a walk with me?"_

_The blonde visibly swallowed. He didn't want to take a walk, but after seeing the old man lash out like that, displaying power he had never before even hinted he possessed, at least not while in the blonde's company, he was sure saying no was not an option._

"_Okay, where are we going?"_

"_You'll see." The Hokage said pressing a button on a metal box on his desk and speaking into it, "Haruka, would you please tell Itachi when he comes that our meeting will be postponed until further notice."_

"_Whatever you say Hokage-sama." A bored female voiced from the box replied._

"_Thank you Haruka. Naruto, follow me."_

_Without further inquiry the orange clad academy student followed the man wearing the huge triangular hat out of the door and out the building. _

_To the boy's surprise, they didn't walk deeper into the village to some obscure detention center as he had first anticipated, but instead they walked around the tower and towards the mountains behind it and soon their footsteps led them to an old looking staircase carved out of stone leading to the top._

_The old man proceeded to climb the stairs while Naruto, hesitant at first for he didn't know that such a way up the mountain existed though he had thought he knew the layout of the village like the back of his hand, quickly ascended the stairs after him._

_Soon they were at the top and immediately the boy's breath was taken away as he gazed down on Konoha from above, almost stretching back further then the eye could see. _

_He could see plumes of smoke rising from chimneys, tiny dots he assumed to be ninjas hopping from rooftop to rooftop. Meanwhile, below the shingles of houses and apartment buidlings, more dots crowded together and moving in erratic patterns could be seen in the market district. The noise he associated with the mobs down below was now nothing more then a dull murmur carried by the summer wind. _

_Over the whole spectacle, shined the sun in the middle of it's descent into the horizon, illuminating everything in an yellowish glow, it's light reflecting off window and causing parts of the village to sparkle like stars had fallen from the sky and now resided on earth. _

"_It's beautiful, isn't it?"_

_The blonde wasn't sure what to say at first, so entranced was he gazing down on his home, "Y-yeah it is."_

"_I'm glad you I think so. I'm glad there will someone around to appreciate it when I'm gone."_

_Naruto's eyes widened in surprise, "When you're gone? Where are you going Oji-san?"_

_The Hokage grimaced at the sincerity he heard in the young jinchuuriki's voice. He hated himself for what he was about to do, but for his plan to work, a bit of emotional manipulation was key if not required. _

"_I didn't want to tell you like this Naruto, but . . . I'm dying." _

_The elderly ninja finished the statement with a faked coughing fit for dramatic effect, which quickly turned into a very real and painful one. _

_The seven year old immediately jumped to his feet and vigorously patted the village leader on the back. His young face still carried a worried expression even when the spasms gradually subsided. _

"_You can't die Oji-san! Who's going to watch over the village? Who's going to watch over me?" Tears sparkled like the glinting windows beyond them, each drop wearing away at Sandaime's temporarily stone heart._

"_I'm sorry Naruto but my job is very stressful, I'm getting old, and I won't be around much longer. I'd retire but I don't have anyone to take my place. If only there was someone who was strong and younger then me, full of passion and . . ."_

"_I'll do it Oji-san! I'll take your place!" the seven year old boy yelled excitedly._

_Hiruzen almost smiled but it was withdrawn before it could show itself and his face turned serious "Tell me Naruto, and be honest. Do you like the village?" He raised his hand to stop the boy from shouting again, "And I'm not just talking about how it look under the summer sun. I'm talking about the people that populate. Do you like them?"_

_The jinchuuriki seemed uncomfortable while his body fidgeted as he considered the question. He didn't want to disappoint his idol but he also really wanted to be honest. "Not really. They don't seem to like me, except the Ayame-chan and other Oji-san. . . Does that make me a bad person?"_

"_No it doesn't Naruto. But you have to understand that being the Hokage means you have to accept people despite their opinions, even if that opinion means they don't necessarily agree with the way you view things or how you handle situation. Now I know you're stronger than others your age and you're constantly trying to prove that you are, but sometimes you have to calm down and deal with people without using violence or aggression. You have to imagine yourself in their shoes and work with them for the good of everyone. Remember that line in the book I gave you "All for one and one for all" Do you understand now Naruto?"_

_The boy's face contorted briefly in contemplation, before be looked his idol in the eyes and said firmly, "Oji-san, I don't want to be Hokage." _

_Naruto's gazed continued to focus on the Hokage even as his liver-spotted visage sagged considerably, "But I promise to protect the village even if people don't like me! For your sake Oji-san! So don't die on me!" _

_The Sandaime's face brightened as he playfully ruffled the child's hair, "That means a lot to me Naruto. Come on, how about we get some ramen at Ichiraku? Then we'll see about getting you a tutor since the academy doesn't seem to be working out."_

_The blonde's face lit up too but then dimmed, "But Iruka-sensei said I have to clean the erasers."_

_Hiruzen's smile didn't falter, "I'm sure Iruka will understand if you show up late, now come on, I'll race you."_

"_Alright!" cried Naruto leaping into the air, "Oji-san you're the greatest!"_

* * *

_(The Present)_

Naruto sighed at the memory, standing alone in the massive forest, replaying how "Oji-san" had so cleverly manipulated him and missing the simple days where he could afford to play the role of the fool without any serious consequence.

Nowadays things were complicated, multiple variables having to be considered when he opened his mouth or executed an action, some under his control, most not. His general indifference towards the world and its inhabitants lightened his burden a bit, but that resource could only be stretched so far.

His whole ordeal with the Uchiha earlier was a perfect example of that.

* * *

_(Flashback, Roughly an hour earlier)_

"_Stop!"_

_Immediately Sakura and Sasuke stopped and collapsed onto the enormous tree branch they were about to leap off of. _

_Both genin wheezed and panted heavily, while their leader calmly stood off to the side, sweaty but not nearly as much as his teammate._

_Quietly the two sitting down eagerly passed the canteen filled with river water, gulping down the sweet tasting liquid until there wasn't a drop left._

_The two gasped and sputtered as they took their time catching their breath and rubbing their sore limbs._

_The Uchiha was the first to recover and once he did he stood, fully erect, posture straight and rigid, and sharingan eyes spinning fast enough that two tomes in each eye nearly became black circles while he hissed menacingly at the blonde:_

"_Alright teme what's the big deal? Why the hell have you been driving us so hard! We have the scrolls we need and the tower is only two days away and we've got plenty of time to get there. So tell me right now, what do you know that we don't!"_

_Naruto's face remained blank as he eyed the avenger purposely letting time slip by unhindered while remaining silent._

_Finally just when Sasuke seemed ready to explode, the jinchuuriki looked past him at the pink haired girl checking supplies and then gestured for the other male to follow him._

"_Where are you guys going?" Sakura called at their backs._

_The blonde casually waved his hand over his head in a nonchalant manner, "Don't worry we'll be right back. We just need to need talk about some things. Guy stuff, you know?" _

_Sasuke could hear Sakura huff and mutter about "stupid macho boys" and followed after Naruto who paused before creating a dozen shadow clones and heading deeper into the foliage._

_After two minutes they arrived in a small clearing covered in sickly looking vines. The taller teen took a seat on a tree stump while Sasuke took the other across from it._

"_So, what do you have to tell me that we had to treehop for five hours straight without rest and leave Sakura by herself?" Sasuke asked studying his teammate, "Are we being pursued?" _

_Unfortunately for Sasuke, instead of the some vague like he had been expecting to hear, he was given a question that caused his eyebrow to rise._

"_What do you know about the Sanin Orochimaru?"_

_Sasuke frowned. History hadn't been his strongest subject while at the academy but he had studied hard all the same to keep his position as the best or at least until Naruto arrived. _

"_He's one of the three Sanin who betrayed the village almost two decades ago because he was doing human experiments or something. He's considered a prodigy at ninjutsu, uses snakes and that's about all I know. Why is that relevant?"_

_The blue eyed teen steepled his fingers and smiled, but then in a flash the smile was gone leaving a canvas painted in concern and anxiety, "Because he's one the following us, or more specifically he's after you and your eyes. And if my sense of smell is as strong as I hope it is, he'll be upon us in about an hour."_

_Sasuke was silent as he looked at his teammate and then uncharacteristically snorted. His mirth died down however when he saw that the blonde wasn't chuckling along with him._

"_You're serious aren't you?"Sasuke said shifting a bit on his wooden seat._

"_Yup. Orochimaru has infiltrated the exam and has either evaded or killed the Anbu assigned to trail us. So what I want you to do is take Sakura and go on to the tower, while I lead Orochimaru away on a wild goose chase. If we don't meet up within the next twenty four hours then assume I'm dead and tell the Hokage what's happening."_

_Naruto stood up and walked over to the confused looking avenger placing a firm hand on his shoulder and looking him directly in the eyes, something he did rarely out of reflex._

"_I'm sure you have a lot of questions and they'll be answered once you've reached the tower. The important thing is that you and Sakura make it too the tower unscathed. Now go back to Sakura and tell her I've got things to take care of. Don't tell her about Orochimaru or the Anbu, you know how women love to worry. Just head for the tower where it's safe . . . theoretically. "_

"_But-"_

_The hand on Sasuke's shoulder gripped harder, the long nails digging deep enough that they began to pierce through the fabric of his clothing._

"_No "buts" Sasuke, small, medium or plump. I'm asking to do me a favor. Protect Sakura, head for the tower and wait. If it makes you feel any better I have a plan to survive this little encounter. Now go on, you don't have much time to get a head start. Oh, and here take this." He said digging into his pocket and placing what appeared to be medallion into Sasuke's hands. _

"_It's works like a signal flare. Just channel and help should arrive, if there's any left." _

"_But what-"_

_The blonde's face began to grow dark with anger, "Sasuke I am not asking you, I am commanding you to get your ass out of here, with Sakura in tow, and get to the tower! If you don't, I swear I will force you to gouge your own pink eye infected pupils out and eat them so Orochimaru has nothing to come after! I'lNOW GO!" _

_Sasuke couldn't respond a wind viciously whipped through the trees and picked him off his feet, effortlessly flinging him across the clearing, hard enough that his bones rattled inside his bruised flesh. If that wasn't incentive enough, an intangible force filled his being with terror, clamping down on his heart and causing Goosebumps to break out all over his frame like rash as words escaped him. Even when he come home all those years ago to find his brother standing over their parent's corpses had felt this much unadulterated feeling of blood tainted fear._

_Struggling to his feet Sasuke didn't look back as he scurried back to the makeshift campsite, certain that if he looked back he would see the gates of hell wide open, demonic arms reaching out eager to throw into waiting saliva filled maws._

_

* * *

_

_(The Present)_

Naruto sighed as he remembered his conversation with Uchiha. He hadn't meant to be that forceful but some people were so thickheaded that a little "motivation" was a necessary to convince them.

He just hoped that Sakura was alright. Her apparent amnesia, (partially his fault now that he looked back), was something of a problem but that could be fixed with time . He only prayed that he lived long enough to explain it to her before anything serious happened. Even now he could feel her faint presence off in the distance growing fainter and fainter, but never leaving his mental radar.

He glanced at the shadow clone disguised as the before mentioned pink haired girl, a perfect imitation all the way down to the small scars covering her frame, seen and unseen. The clone smiled shyly at him, aware of his thoughts.

The original Naruto waved back beneath the pale face he wore, wondering how weird it would seem to a outside aware of the exchange.

The other clone, this one henged as the blonde himself, read the thought and smirked at his creator.

Naruto scowled at the replica and imagined it exploding, not in a cloud of smoke, but in a glorious display of flying viscera and blood. The clone took the hint and looked away picking its nose.

Say what would will about how useful shadow clones could be, the effectiveness was significantly lessened when the copies started to act on their own accord.

Then like a dark void swirling into existence, all sense of playfulness was gone as a foreign presence activated the security seals he had placed on the surrounding foliage. A moment later an explosion rocked the canopy shaking the leaves from the trees and making birds squawk in surprise.

Immediately Naruto and his clones were ready as a twenty foot slightly charred snake the size of a large oak came crashing down from above sweeping up "Naruto" up in its jaws and continuing awkwardly fall down to the forest floor.

The Sakura clone cried out and made ready to leap off the branch it stood on when a hardened ball of mud crashed into its back and knocked it from sight.

Now alone, Naruto disguised as the brooding Uchiha faced the thin effeminate figure wearing a wide brimmed hat peasants hat, tanned shirt and black pants jumped down in front of him.

The new arrival opened their mouth unnaturally wide, a snake emerging from the contracting elastic throat and ejected from the throat that snake was a clearly razor sharp katana, hilt first. Once the sword extended to its full length its owner grabbed it by the handle and smoothly entered a stance befitting a master swordsman.

"Ku ku ku, I admit your plan, while foolhardy, was a good one. Sending out groups of disguised shadow clones to distract me while you faced me on your own. How heroic and stupid, your father would be proud. Too bad I saw through your simple little ruse and sent my minions to hunt down your real teammates."

The blonde's eyes briefly widened in shock. However, he had prepared for such a moment and he quickly strangled the feeling. With a nod he dropped the illusion clinging to him, revealing a battle ready Naruto.

His change of clothes was basically the same as before but with the addition of a leather breastplate with metal wiring woven between the threads strapped to his chest and on his lower extremities he wore metal legs guards. On his arms he wore overlapping copper red plates of metals to form gauntlets while on his hands were black fingerless gloves with retractable claws attached to the tops of them. A helmet made of reddish metal shaped like a skull of a fox covered the upper half of his face the underside of jaws. The outfit was crude but the point was mobility at the cost of any real protection. His accelerated healing could take care of any wound he suffered.

"Ku ku ku, it seems you came prepared. Let's see just how ready you really are."

Orochimaru's form blurred and suddenly he was in front of the blonde, already in mid swing. The Sannin scowled in anger as his blade was stopped by upraised arms instead of easily passing through flesh and bone like he had anticipated, though his sword did make half way through.

"Impressive. There aren't many materials, metal or otherwise, that can stop my Kusanagi. I must know where you got obtained those gauntlets of yours."

Naruto growled, not bothering to answer and pushed forward knocking the traitor off balance, and quickly swiped at his opponent's chest, tearing through muscle and sinew with ease.

The snake summoner merely looked amused then dissolved into a puddle of mud while the real one erupted from trunk of tree behind the teen.

The jinchuuriki's body moved before his mind could process what was happening and with a ringing clang, the sword was again blocked and Naruto went on the offensive clawing and shredding at empty air while Orochimaru showed off his trademark agility by avoiding the otherwise fatal strikes.

The constant stream of near misses didn't discourage the blonde, in fact it had opposite effect instead increasing his drive to win and rip the snake's head off. Besides going on the defensive was tantamount to suicide for the more experienced shinobi would simply use the open space combined with his weapon's longer reach to slice him to ribbons. By relentlessly attacking, Naruto eliminated those factors, though he knew his adversary had a whole bag of tricks he was just waiting to unleash.

This prediction came true when Orochimaru leaped backwards and started rapidly making hand seals.

"Your taijutsu seems up to par, but what about your ninjutsu?"

A second later the Sannin almost playfully released an arc of lightning from his fingertips.

Seeing that the electrical attack was too fast to dodge Naruto swiftly countered by exhaling a dense puff of raw wind chakra.

The two attacks collided with small boom followed by a small ball of intense flame from Orochimaru.

Naruto refused to play into the snake's hands by getting into a contest of ninjutsu and instead of releasing a ball of water, ducked under the flaming sphere and charged with a roar.

The Kage in genin's clothing seemed disappointed but continued leaping backwards hurling jutsu after jutsu at the teen who either dodged or blocked with is chakra hardened gauntlets. He chased after the criminal branch to branch but never getting closer thanks to onslaught of elemental techniques. His chase was made even more difficult when the ninjutsu prodigy used one hand seals to unleash elemental blasts one after another while with his other hand he manipulated the levitating Kusanagi in attempt to pierce the blonde vitals like a blood seeking missile of finely honed metal death.

In the midst of avoiding another ball of fire to the face, Naruto created three shadow clones made sturdy with extra chakra and together the quartet of blondes worked in tandem to weave their way past Orochimaru's offensive net of attacks..

Providing extra targets for the Sanin to deal with the clones gained the jinchuuriki a bit more ground then he would have on his own but didn't help much as a bundle of hissing snakes abruptly collided with the first one replica while another was skewered through the face the Kusanagi which had lengthened an additional ten feet with terrifying speed.

Spotting an opening the single remaining clone rushed forward past its dispelled brethren and reached out to claw the traitor's face off. It was two feet away when a massive snake slithered from under the branch and caught the clone with one great hiss, crushing it out of existence in the blink of an eye.

Before Naruto could think to retreat the snake was joined by a multitude of smaller ones that seemed to sprout from the larger one and together they lunged at him like the disconnected heads of underdeveloped hydra.

Metal claws broke and withstood venomous fangs in a clash of scales and steel. Naruto leaped and jumped like flea pumped with stimulants as he clawed and gouged out eyes and raked scaly hides. Wind chakra covered claws were making short work of his foes when he saw the largest snake open its maw once again, flames gathering at the back its throat like a living furnace.

Rather than making an aerial maneuver to evade he leaped into the serpent's mouth as fire engulfed his entire body.

The snake swallowed its prey with a single swallow, pleased at the meal it felt enter its esophagus.

Its pleasure was short lived as suddenly its body from its head down to its tail suddenly bulged like a balloon filled hot air. Before it could open its mouth again to relieve the pressure it exploded sending overcooked and occasionally raw innards everywhere, the explosion scattering the smaller serpents like pieces of yarn in a gust of wind.

No evidence remained to tell the fate that befallen the container other then sudden death.

Curious, Orochimaru slowly walked over to the remains of his summon kicking aside pieces here and there while he searched for the remains of his opponent. Too many pieces of meat seemed to litter the branch as wide a small city street for his liking.

His doubts were not unfounded as two charred pieces of skull popped and were replaced by two shadow clones screaming and hurdling at him.

Two quick well placed slashes put an end to the copies but more pops signaled the assault of dozens of body doubles. So many were they in number that only brief glimpses of pale faced man could be seen as they endeavored to dog-pile him.

Soon the great accumulation of chakra structures squirmed and fidgeted while thin white snakes wriggled through the gaps in limbs, hissing and biting, trying to break free.

Clones were dispersed by the dozen, but there more to take their place as they all slowly fused together into one solid mass of fabricated armor and flesh.

From higher up in crisscrossing walkways of foliage and branch the real Naruto stepped out from behind from a veil of leaves.

Directly across from him his enemy emerged from a seemingly innocuous looking patch of bark that the Sannin smoothly detached from like human slime.

"It's impressive how much chakra you have to simply toss away?" Orochimaru said gesturing at the heap below, "Not surprising, considering what you are. But I think about time I end this little game of ours and I go seek my true target."

Chuckling, Naruto looked at the Sanin and spoke up for the first time since the battle had begun, "Oh yeah? You'll have to catch me first, although _I think_ an ancient fossil like you could never catch me. You'd probably break a hip trying, _old man_."

The insult had the desired effect as the Sannin glared at the impertinent youth and in doing so, unintentionally made the first mistake of the battle by looking the jinchuuriki in the eyes and promptly being ensnared in the genjutsu trap waiting to be sprung.

The genjutsu Naruto caught the Sannin in was a fairly simple one considering the difference in skill between the two. A mere mix up in how the target visually perceived the world. Essentially, heaven and earth switched places, up became down while left became right.

But the point was that it was a easy one to pull off without any hand signs and it bought him enough time to dash forward in a chakra enhanced jump and ram his claws into the Orochimaru's chest and stomach, then with a sharp tug he eviscerated his victim like a animal in a slaughterhouse.

Unfortunately for our young protagonist he also made his first mistake of the battle while sheathing his hands in innards of his adversary.

In his haste to destroy the pale skinned man, he didn't expect for the body he impaled to suddenly grow rigid and then the mouth to open, twice as wide as before, and a slimy new, fully grown body to spurt out like guts out of a stepped on sardine.

The "genin" didn't have time to pull out his claws before the legendary sword entered his body through his torso, his rapidly beating heart, powered by anxiety and adrenaline, pumped the specially concocted poison swiftly through his veins swifter then a hurricane wind.

The blue eyed boy tried to scream but could only manage to gurgle, foam forming at the edges of his mouth. He began to jerk and spasm, loosening himself from the cast off shell and falling onto a lower branch.

From within, he felt his heart begin to speed up like a jackhammer and his stomach clench painfully almost in half. What little training he had received in the medical arts helped him piece together that the rest of his organs were starting to shut down as well.

The twenty foot fall onto hard unforgiving wood didn't help his situation much either.

As his vision blurred and his tongue swelled to twice its original size, visions of the past drifted through his mind.

_Successfully pulling off the Kage Bunshin no jutsu . . ._

_Being acknowledged by his tutors . . ._

_Punching the fat store keeper in face for trying to overcharge him . . ._

_Marking Sakura as his beneath a full moon while the town folk danced like heathens at a ancient arcane ritual . . ._

In his head Naruto's mind sluggishly processed what could've been his last thought.

"_Orochimaru wants to hurt Sasuke. Sakura is with Sasuke. Orochimaru might hurt Sakura!"_

Slowly, corruptive crimson chakra covered his entire body lifting him into the air while blackening the bark of the tree branch. One, two, three then four tails manifesting at the base of his spine as he sprang upward, howling like the demon he contained.

Orochimaru raised an eyebrow and evaded by hopping to left, exploiting his opponent's relatively uncoordinated lunge by thrusting his blade forward into the jinchuuriki's side. The sword penetrated the thick cloak of energy a couple of inches, barely scraping the fleshy body underneath before harmlessly being forced back.

The vessel caught on quick lashing out with all four tails like a enraged scorpion, two from above, one from the left and the remaining surging in from the right, hoping to ensnare his enemy.

The Sanin nimbly avoided all four appendages and continued to do so as they continued to wildly thrash like cut electrical wire, searing everything they touched.

Quickly realizing that he was being herded into a corner Orochimaru quickly molded chakra in his lungs and spat bullets of water knocking the tails aside and filling the area with hot steam. He used the cover of mist to make dozens of clones, all of which wielding imitation Kusanagis and posed to strike.

"Sssince you like clones ssso much, play with these." Orochimaru hissed in amusement observing how the vessel would deal with the nuisances.

The energy cloaked creature screamed in rage as he sensed the real snake slither away into the background. Then a primitive idea formed in its shared conscious.

Withdrawing all its appendages, the thick coat of chakra thickened as numerous blades attempted to pierce the body in the center.

Then with another scream its chakra hide swelled in size and then in a heartbeat the thick coat of corrosive youki exploded outwards like a bomb, and everything in fifty meter radius was soaked in poisonous blistering energy

What was left behind was nothing but pure devastation. What wasn't ash, was smoldering or on it's way to becoming ash. The few animals that had stayed behind or were too slow to flee after the teen's transformation were now nothing now, simply nothing but maybe a few free floating particles in the hot searing wind rushing to fill the artificial vacuum.

The tree branch along with tree and most of the surrounding flora the mini-Kyuubi had been atomized along with everything in sight. In the distance more trees could be heard crashing to the ground like dominoes as molecules broke down and were freed from the bonds they held them.

The only things that stirred within the immediate vicinity of the explosion were a raw and nearly naked body lying flat on the once lush forest floor and a blackened mass of coiled flesh a distance away.

Naruto stirred and weakly climbed to his feet coughing blood while skin began slowly grow back at an agonizingly slow rate over exposed patches of muscle and bone. His gauntlets and claws had survived the improvised explosion intact, barely, but his clothes had burned away and his metal leg guards had melted into his calves, fusing together like sickening pieces of bread slathered with condiments. He was in pure agony and from the looks of the twitching heap across from him his ordeal was far from over.

The mass, now what he recognized to be the large snake from earlier that swallowed his clone lookalike collapsed in on itself like a pile of cinder revealing a misshapen lump of flesh, which seemed to be simultaneously melting and regenerating, neither process overwhelming the other.

After a couple of seconds a pale misshapen face formed at the top of the disfigured mound. At first the general structure of the face appeared human enough but the skull was too angular, while the neck protracted without an apparent end, scales growing where skin once did.

There were no limbs to speak of.

The neck continued to lengthen, rising higher and higher twisting around an invisible center like a piece of meaty rope. Soon the monster stopped growing, complete and now stretching like a cat waking from a nap in the afternoon sun.

Underneath short tufts of black hair yellow serpentine eyes underlined with purple peered at jinchuuriki, while the jaw muscles retracted in a twisted parody of a smirk. Though the face was severely distorted along with the voice, the differences overall were minute and negligible.

"Maybe you're not ssssso boring after all." The creature hissed accompanied by deep rumbling sound from its throat that could've been laughter, but who could tell faced with such an abomination.

Naruto grimaced at the beast leering at him. People had called him a monstrosity and an atrocity against all throughout his life but what stood before definitely took the cake.

Feeling around his mouth with his tongue, he searched for the hard lump that didn't match the others.

With a crack he broke the fake tooth hiding a pill set in his gums, grimacing at the bitter taste filling his mouth. He could only vaguely guess at the long-term aftereffects of what he was about to do would have on his physical and mental health, but he was certain none of them were good.

"_Where's the fucking Anbu when you need them?" _

Again, from the seal on his stomach, deep red chakra swirled around him, enveloping him, embracing him like a mother would a child. And again he lost himself to the bestial madness licking at the fringes of his mind and soul.

* * *

**Ha, my first cliffhanger! This was originally one long chapter, but I split it into two. It seems to work better that way. There may be spelling mistakes since I was up all night editing this, so don't be too surprised. The second half will be late since I have a family reunion to go to in the South where there are only, five maybe six computers at most anywhere. I'll probably update about two weeks from now.**

**Oh, how I can't wait be embraced by wrinkly old arms that smell like cats, stale urine and age, all while pretending I remember the names of people whom I've obviously never met before! :(**

**P.S I just found out honey bunches of oats makes a cereal that's **_**just**__**bunches. **_**It may not be epic to others but it is to me.**

**Q: What's going to happen to Sasuke and Sakura?**

A: You'll see in the next chapter. There will be surprises.

**Q: What about Naruto?**

A: His fate will be revealed next chapter, sort of.

**-Fishing For Teeth**


	4. Chapter 4

(The Forest of Death)

The ground below rumbled as almost all the earthbound fauna within a two mile radius able to run, slither or hop stampeded with reckless abandon towards the other end of the forest. The relationship between predator and prey, defined by thousands of years of coevolution, was broken as each animal fended for itself, driven by the stronger and deeper instinct to flee in the face of a superior threat.

Leaping from one tree branch to another Sakura was thankful she wasn't swept up in the chaos below, the collective fear so strong she could taste it on her tongue, pungent and sour like urine.

But still, she couldn't help but be spurred on as another invisible wave of unadulterated malice washed over her, sending shivers up her spine and striking terror into her heart. The shivering complimented the unshakable sense of foreboding that settled at the bottom of her stomach like a cold lump of sludge. Her skin itched while her insides felt prickly and hot, while another bout of nausea assailed her.

On top of that was the feeling that Naruto was at the center of it all, in the eye of tornado, unable to escape without being swept away like a dust bunny sucked up by in a massive vacuum.

In the distance an unearthly roar rolled through the forest, the fifth in an infrequent series of hellish snarls, followed by clouds of squawking birds erupting from the canopy.

However terrified the birds were, Sakura was even more afraid for the inhuman snarl was familiar to her ears, a horrible growl that jolted her awake from poorly remembered nightmares, desperately clutching at sweat soaked bed sheets that had been knocked aside by her unconscious thrashing.

She had prayed that the inhuman growl was just a recurring terror fabricated by her dreaming mind, but it seemed like her prayers had been for nothing but pleas based on false hope.

"_Something's wrong, terribly wrong. I can feel it in my bones. Please let Naruto be okay." _Sakura thought.

"_**Leave him. It's better off he dies here, alone and without aid."**_ Her second voice said eagerly, but clearly just as frightened, if not more.

A second mighty bellow, louder than its predecessor, heralded yet another great migration of avian organisms, except this time around the monstrous call sounded more like the pained death rattle ripped from the throat of defeated predator rather than that a victorious and rampaging beast.

As if sensing the change the trio of blonde clones leading them, (the rest had all withdrawn back into the forest about fifteen minutes ago in one large squad), who had appeared to grow more haggard and pale merely the farther they traveled, suddenly bent in half like they being suddenly gutted, two of them dispelling without warning while the other crashing into a tree branch it could have easily leaped over.

The kunoichi abruptly came to an awkward halt, staring at where the replicas had vanished and nearly skidding off the branch she landed on.

Sensing he wasn't being followed, Sasuke turned to look at the girl standing with her jaw clenched.

"Come on Sakura we don't far to go. The tower is less than two kilometers away."

"I'm not going." She said quietly, barely audible above the wild stampeded below.

"What do you mean you're not going?" asked the Uchiha, nervous but hiding it the best he could.

Like her, he had heard the receding cry of bloodlust and felt the intangible current of demonic blood freezing hunger shear through him. But, unlike her, he was spurred on by the monstrous call, eager to flee to the alleged safety of the tower, away from the unseen horror that made him recall those imagined gates of hell and the ravenous monstrosities that waited beyond.

He was willingly to travel to ends of the earth to escape it, but he needed to take Sakura with him, or else there _definitely_ would be hell to pay.

"I'm not going." Sakura repeated, her voice gaining confidence as she stood her ground and crossed her arms. "I'm going to help Naruto. He's in trouble, I can feel it and I bet you can feel it too, can't you?"

The avenger forced himself to look the girl in the eyes and visibly strained to put on his most convincing smile.

It was painfully obvious he was out of practice.

"I think he's doing just fine. He knows how to stay out of trouble . . ."

" _. . . When he isn't causing it."_ Sasuke left unsaid.

Sakura didn't look convinced. "He could be hurt or worse. Besides his clones dispelled and he said that only happens when he's running low on chakra or it's disrupted somehow,_ which has never happened before. _At least not while we we're around."

"He could've dispelled them consciously to save chakra." Sasuke quickly shot back.

"Why would he need to save chakra? We both know he's got way more then Kakashi-sensei? Besides, what about how tired the clones looked? I may not be an expert on clones Sasuke, but I know when someone looks sick, that means something is wrong. And those clones looked like they were on verge of dying, which in fact, they did. You saw it just like I did."

"That could have been . . . indigestion."

Sakura frowned and gave the sternest glare she could muster hoping the Uchiha would buckle under her emerald glare. True her mother was still teaching her the infamous "Haruno Stare" and she had a long way to go before mastering it, but it was worth a shot.

Fortunately her attempt seemed to be working for Sasuke turned his head avoiding eye contact.

"Sakura we have to get to the tower." He said finally.

"I'm sure we can find him and make it to the tower in time." Sakura said, trying to use logic, "Besides you heard what that crazy purple haired woman said. We have to enter the tower as a team or else we can't move on."

Sasuke walked towards the pink haired girl and gripped her shoulder, briefly considering putting her under genjutsu, but quickly dismissed the notion since it would be a waste time and energy . . . not to mention she'd probably break within moments of being ensnared.

"Listen Sakura, I promised Naruto I would get us both to the tower and things would be explained there. I'm just as clueless as you are. Now come on."

Sakura narrowed her eyes and shook off his hand, taking a few steps back to distance her from him.

"What did you talk about with Naruto when I was checking supplies that he couldn't tell me?"

Sasuke gave a half-assed shrug trying to look naïve, but failing, "Nothing important. You know just . . . guy stuff."

She could tell he regretted using that excuse because it didn't take a prodigy to notice how lame it sounded.

"Then I have nothing more to say to you Sasuke-kun." Said Sakura, huffing as she turned on her heel and prepared to leap.

She heard him start to run after her, sandaled heels gently striking wood and was moment away from telling him off when a massive shadow loomed over her head and suddenly the world as she knew it seemed to explode with a deafening crack, lurching upwards in a sickening tumble head over heels.

She had little time to register that her body was being flung forward, briefly feeling the contents of her stomach enter freefall, before gravity kicked in and she started to fall, quickly attaining at terminal velocity.

"_Ten meters per second, that's how fast I'm falling. It's funny, I never thought of myself as the flying type. It's surprisingly nice"_ She thought with a distracted, her mind momentarily overcome shock.

"_**Shake it off baka we're going to die!"**_

The distressed yell awoke her from her shocked induced state of quasi-leisureliness as the jittery image of the ground rapidly swelled before and instantly she was overcome by the fear of becoming a bloody shattered husk crushed own weight.

Her panic motivated her to act. She quickly straightened her body and brought hands together in a short series of hand signs.

She sucked in air and waited with lungs ready to burst as she continued to tumble downwards. For her harebrained plan to work she needed the timing to be perfect or else . . . well there wouldn't be an "or else" because she would be dead.

Approximately three seconds before she was destined to collide with the unforgiving plot of earth she let loose a loud belch releasing the large sphere of compressed air she was holding at where she estimated her landing point would be.

Predictably the rippling ball of air hit the ground first at an angle and as planned it burst in a gust of wind. And, just as planned, Sakura's body was hit by the backlash before landing, slowing her descent down enough that when her body did hit, it bounced, clumsily for several meters/

She finally came to a rough and undignified stop among some bushes at the other side of clearing she entered, groaning and trying not to move any part of her body.

She groaned, happy to still be among the living, though it felt like she could be mistaken.

Grunting, she began to assess the damage by running a simple diagnosis performed by circulating chakra through body.

Her left wrist was sprained, along with her right ring and pinky fingers; a few slivers of wood were sticking out of her back, not deep enough to cause pain but still a hindrance. Her wounds, in addition to the various scrapes and bruises covering the entirety of her frame, left her feeling like shit.

Miraculously though, none of her bones appeared to be broken but she didn't want to risk it by moving.

Sakura slowly turned on her side and was in the middle of removing the splinters when she heard a voice shout from high above in the trees.

"Hey bitch! You still alive! Scream if you are!"

Sakura jerked at the feminine voice coming from above her, muffled by the distance but still loud and clear. A moment something large landed the ground sending tremors through the dirt and causing leafs and debris flying everywhere.

Fearful, Sakura unconsciously suppressed her chakra and peeked from underneath the foliage.

Less then fifty feet away from her stood a giant ogre. She wished she had a better word to describe the thing hunched on its knees, maybe the word "monster" or the phrase "nightmare come to life" fit better but it made little difference. It was here in the flesh and it looked angry.

The giant fiend was dressed in black shirt and pants, long white hair covered its eyes, and in two hands it wielded kanabōs the length of four maybe five men, while with the other two hung limp at it sides.

Perched on its shoulder was a girl with long dark pink hair dressed in a dull green vest, grey arm bands, and loose grey pants. On her head she wore a headband with a musical note imprinted on it under a dark blue skull cap. Though Sakura couldn't see very well with the bush she was hiding under partially blocking line of sight, it seemed like the girl seemed to be favoring her right side as she glowered at the area below her.

The stranger started to play a haunting melody with what looked like a simple flute while the monster grunted and pawed at the ground with its free hands pulling up saplings and huge clumps of dirt like a living bulldozer.

"I'm not going to repeat myself." The girl yelled, taking her mouth off her instrument, her summon stopping the moment she did, "Either you come out now or I'll hunt you down. Coming out will save both of us time, and I might go easy on you."

Time passed and the ogre continued tearing up the landscape as it were made of paper while the kunoichi riding it seemed to grow agitated and restless.

Finally, after two minutes the kunoichi stopped what she was doing and shouted:

"Alright, it's clear you've decided to remain hidden. Don't blame me for what happens next."

With that said the female jumped off the ogre's shoulder and continued playing the flute. The ogre opened its mouth, revealing a massive set of crooked and snaggled teeth, and a _phantom _with multiple mouths of its own, all lips thin and cracked, wriggled out like a transparent worm.

It experimentally squirmed in the air, apparently relishing in it's freedom from captivity, while its host remained motionless. Then all the mouths lining the phantom smiled at once and it snaked its way along the soil like a ghostly serpent, at first directionless but after awhile an internal compass must of kicked in for it headed straight towards where Sakura was hiding under her leady shelter.

Sakura held her breath and began to slowly inch deeper into the foliage as the apparition within a creature came closer and closer to her position, seeming to become more eager the shorter the distance between them became.

Suddenly there was a stirring in the bushes besides the leaf genin who nearly jumped out of her skin at the noise. Then, in the blink of an eye, an object the size of a football scurried out of the shrubbery on four stubby legs.

The "Ghost Worm" as the hiding kunoichi had decided to call it, paused then surged forward with surprising speed, swerving to meet the animal head on. Without a sound it passed through the young raccoon, proving the eerie parasite had no mass of its own.

The furry critter shivered as if caught in suddenly caught in cold spot, and then with a small squeak it collapsed and rolled over, dead or at very least unconscious.

The green eyed girl stared in horror. She couldn't afford to let that thing catch her or it would game over without a doubt. The problem with her plan was that "Ghost Worm" was now headed in her direction and gaining momentum.

Thinking quickly, Sakura gritted her teeth and erupted from the bush, leading a handful of regular bunshins mixed earth clones following her lead.

The flautist didn't seem surprised by the sudden outburst and continued playing, but drastically increased the pitch of the tempo until it became a hellish drone that drilled the ear drums.

The worm drew back like a cobra then suddenly lashed out, passing through six of the bunshins, a third of the total number, like derailed freight train. The intangible clones soundlessly dissipated, as if their death had descended upon them too suddenly to comprehend.

The original Sakura at the edge of the herd of lookalikes ran faster, discreetly weaving in and out of the herd, carefully to not actually touch any of the projections in order to keep her location hidden until the time was right.

The multi-mouthed phantom creature drew back and was prepared to strike again when the mob of pink haired young women doubled then tripled in number.

Again the pitch of the music changed, dipping back to the previous tone, and all of its mouths snapped shut at once then the worm was dispelled into thin white mist while its host closed its jaws and sprang into action, wiping out two rows of bunshins with one wide swing of its mighty club with savage war cry befitting a creature of its twisted nature.

In response the horde dispersed into three man teams, a third of them running circles around the monster the beast, the few earth clones throwing kunai and shuriken and launching the occasional water bullet while the regular clones ran between the beast's legs yelling and screaming nonsense, adding to growing chaos on the forest floor.

The remaining two thirds of the group quickly formed a half circle around the kunoichi from The Village Hidden in the Sound, then without further instruction, charged, baring down on their target like a true army.

Unfortunately, their target wasn't cowed by the collective assault. Showing off a surprising amount of dexterity and skill, the flute player didn't stop performing even as she spun like a ballerina, her feet constantly whipping up to strike any clones that came too close or when she gracefully leaned sideways to avoid sharpened projectiles threatened to pierce her flesh. Initially it seemed pointless, but the girl was slowly thinning out the assembly and backing away towards the edge of the clearing, to the safety of the forest beyond.

Suddenly the melody changed, altering from a frantic almost frenzied war beat to low pitched whistling sound, so distorted and unrhythmic in its irregular hazy pace, that it could easily a have been mistaken for the demented howling of tortured souls rising from the bowls of hell to share tales of their agony with the living.

The ogre stopped, the tune bending its subservient will no longer filling the air and it wasn't the only affected by the change.

Beneath its unsightly eyeless visage the hollering replicas stood spellbound. Then like the insubstantial imitations that they were, a majority lost their façade of substance, fading away like mirages. The few that actually were constructed from physical matter, and thus did have substance, slumped over and crumbled back into mounds of dirt.

One by one, then two by two, the mob green eyed young women in the grass covered area enclosed by twisted trees disappeared.

All except one lone figure, on the verge of collapse.

Sakura stumbled and strained against the metal chains binding her wrists and ankles as she desperately tried to claw her way to her opponent's bare throat.

She knew the restraints were merely her adversary's chakra bolstered imagination invading her mind, but the mind, almost never used to a tenth of its full potential was powerful in what it could do, thoroughly proven by the sharp pain she felt as the imaginary shackles bit into her wrists causing her knees to quiver and bend.

Finally she fell to her knees as her adversary calmly walked over, her stride brimming with confidence and smooth face adorned with the gloating grin of a conqueror.

"Now normally I'd just beat the shit out of you then, but I think it's fair that I kill you since that fucking blonde teammate of yours killed that fatass Jirbou. Sure, that sorry tub of lard had it coming but he was still part of the team and his death is really going to fuck up the "team dynamic" shit we had going, you know?" The smiling girl didn't wait for her captive to reply as she tugged Sakura's leaf entangled long hair, the bun having fallen apart in the crash landing, allowing the long strands to fall down her back in a grimy mess. "But of course you don't understand. You're nothing but weak little girl who cares more about her looks then being a kunoichi. I hate bitches like you, wasting space and resources, nothing better then cannon fodder and most of the time you manage to fuck up even that simple task. And besides, Orochimaru-sama said that we couldn't kill the Uchiha _but_ he didn't say shit about his teammates."

Pulling a kunai out of the pouch hanging around her waist the kunoichi hailing from the Village Hidden in the Sound plunged the metal instrument into her captive's chest, deep enough that it doubtlessly pierced her victim's heart.

The kneeling pink haired girl gurgled as she coughed up blood, arms still hanging limply in mid air.

"My name's Tayuya by the way. Remember that name when you're burning in hell."

Tayuya grinned in satisfaction and wiped the murder weapon on the other girl's red dress.

But to her surprise the knife met little resistance and sluggishly passed through the dress like it were made of molasses.

The supposedly dying girl smiled ghoulishly as she lunged forward and tried to grab the shocked girl by the throat.

Tayuya easily fended off the attack, but cried out in pain as she felt something hard ram into the back of her skull sending her sprawling forward into the dirt.

The older girl groaned as she felt fingers eagerly groped and wrestle the flute from her right hand.

"Who's the weak bitch now, eh? Oh and by the way, my name is Sakura, Haruno Sakura." Sakura questioned, kicking the downed body three in the ribs.

She watched in sadistic glee as the member of Orochimaru's elite force groaned and crawled on scraped hands and knees to escape further punishment.

Sakura was more then happy to continue kicking her opponent, but that wasn't her main objective.

"_I'll have to thank Kabuto for that "lesson" in genjutsu."_

"_**Yes, and when we meet him again we'll teach him a lesson of out own. A lesson of pain and humility."**_

Ignoring the whisper, Sakura wiped the stolen flute on her dress, pursed her lips together and began to play

* * *

(Tayuya)

The foul mouthed young woman recognized the piece to be a piss poor rendition of "Hana had a Little Lamb" and in other situation would have scoffed at such a shitty performance, except right now the childish song filled her with fear as she heard heavy footsteps make their towards her.

What few knew about her demonic summons were that weren't actually real "summons" per se, but actually extensions of her chakra while the flute, carved out a special metal found on the coast of Kiri and forged in fires Kumo, served as a way for her to mold her chakra into physical shapes and to control the resulting creations. Another little known fact was that her "ogres" were controlled more by intent rather simple musical notes or rhythm, which simply was used to help her focus and make the movement her chakra monsters more streamlined and less jerky.

The problem was that right now Tayuya didn't possess the flute, and thus did not have it to help her manipulate the beast lumbering her way.

Head throbbing and vision blurry she stumbled to the left avoiding the giant hands attempting to snatch her up.

She turned to face her own creation turned against her and focused with all her might as it raised its signature kanabō raised high up in the air and swung it down fast enough that it whistled like a miniature comet of death and mountain crushing destruction.

The deadly blow that would have turned her organs into pulp never made contact. Instead a large cloud of smoke filled the air, lingering where the mighty ogre had once been.

Tayuya's sigh of relief turned into murderous glare as she faced the other kunoichi.

"I guess you underestimated me, huh?" Said Sakura with a smirk, trying to hide her surprise while she tucked away the flute into her pocket.

However, her smirk would soon change into an gape of horror as watched the older girl close her eyes and with a unladylike snort transform before her eyes.

Clenching her fists, Tayuya threw off her cap and focused inwards, drawing upon the power of the seal permanently inked into her right shoulder.

Heeding the call, the seal shined with a fiery light, black markings rapidly spread across the surface of her skin from head to toe like a living tattoo. Quickly she felt herself entering the stages of level two for the first time, her chakra coils expanding with the onrush of energy, skin beginning to thicken, muscles bulging, and her skull beginning to reshape itself to accommodate the new calcified growths.

So powerful was the influx of power, every leaf and twig in a ten foot radius rose into the air that crackled with energy, hovering for few seconds before abruptly being pushed away by the invisible exertion of force as the transformation reached its apex.

But with that surge came a dull pain, originating in left leg, comparatively petty when matched against ache of transformation, but still there.

In her lust for revenge against the "weak bitch" Tayuya ignored the ache, tugging stronger at the eager strings sent by the curse seal.

Unbeknown by her, that decision would cost her dearly later on.

When Tayuya looked up and could see mirrored in her enemy's fearful gaze that the metamorphosis had caused her skin to darken to the color of burnt umber, while her hair had grown longer lightened to shade of pink and her irises had changed from chocolate brown to a dull rings of gold, in contrast the color of the sclera had inverted from white to pitch black. Even more radical then change in skin and eye color were the twisting trio of horns that grew from her scalp almost like those of a moose.

She flexed her arms and legs, pleased at the taught bands muscles that rippled beneath her skin, practically begging to be used in violent combat.

While impressed by how she had morphed physically, she was even more delighted to feel the hot river of chakra that hummed in coils just below the surface.

Never before had she felt this strong, this magnificent, this _Alive_.

Drinking in the fear she saw in the other girl's eyes, Tayuya cracked her knuckles and gave a smile that would have made the devil quake in his hoofs.

"I admit I underestimated you. But I promise I will not make that same mistake again, you scrawny cunt."

Dashing forward with a fresh burst of speed Tayuya feinted to the left but quickly changed course to the right and shot out her right fist shot in a haymaker meant to break her opponent's nose.

The bitch saw the punch coming and leaned back to avoid it, but reflexes couldn't seem to keep up and as a result and some of the momentum behind the blow was transferred into her jaw.

Tayuya saw Sakura throw up her arms to protect her face and so viciously struck with a hard knee to the girls stomach, satisfied by the involuntary gasp of air she heard escape from her victim's mouth.

Sakura was quick to recover and tried to use her smaller frame and greater agility to her advantage, the key word being "tried" as Tayuya relentlessly pounded the girl with everything she had, not relenting for a single second as her enemy whimpered beneath the barrage of blows.

"Not laughing now are you, you little bitch!" Tayuya roared landing a solid hit in Sakura's right flank, just above the kidney.

Sakura sputtered, and in move not entirely performed by her alone, recklessly dropped her guard and ran forward, crashing into Tayuya and driving her into the dirt.

"Get the fuck off me you shiteating cunt!"

Blind rage and the need to destroy the little whelp somehow managing to pin her to the ground was all that Tayuya could feel, as sweat coated every inch of her mutated body. Her wrath was like a fever that would drive her insane if she didn't quell it and she knew without a doubt that only way soothe the violent storm of anger whirling inside was to beat this no name kunoichi who had made a fool of her, senseless, and that was exactly what she planning to do.

Her arms restrained, Tayuya's sank into her teeth into the other girl's right cheek and then her neck relishing in the hot coppery taste of blood that splashed down her throat. She then drew upon that boiling ocean of rage and in a display of near herculean strength she broke the grip on her arms and sent the Leaf kunoichi tumbling into the dirt several yards away.

The savage display of strength wasn't over as Tayuya jumped to her feet, rushed over and grabbed Sakura by the ankles then proceeded to swing the twitching body like a piece of food stuck to the blades of a blender. A spike of cold was felt somewhere below her waist but the blood drunk Tayuya brushed aside without a thought.

"_I HAVE THE POWER!"_

**"RRRRAAAAGGGGGGGGHHHHH!"**

The tremendous war cry signaled the release of Tayuya's mighty hold and subsequently brutal and inelegant flight of the Haruno girl.

Sakura's body hit the trunk of the tree back first with muted thud and a sharp crack, momentarily sticking to the bark like a wad of wet paper towel then falling off in a crumpled heap. There was now no question of whether or not the member of Team Seven had broken any bones, but how many were now left _unbroken_.

Tayuya wasn't done yet though. She needed a complete and utter guarantee that her target was completely and utterly destroyed to the point of certain death and beyond, nothing but an unrecognizable corpse and bits of smashed brains clinging to her callous covered knuckles.

Ready to make another dash forward, Tayuya was two steps into her deadly sprint when her legs suddenly gave out on her and she clumsily fell forward.

Confused Tayuya tried to stand but was met with the new sensation that had come with her entering of stage two of the curse seal, which was now back in full force and quickly making its presence too obvious to disregard.

What had started out as a dull throbbing sensation in left calf was now best described as a poisonous chill seeping into the marrow of her bones and her lower extremities until they were almost completely numb with it. In the meantime the white hot power of the curse seal continued its ravenous circuit through her system while the freezing sense of deadness below her waist seemed to consume the heat and grow stronger in influence.

In retaliation the curse seal converted more of the girl's chakra into its own potent but unstable form of chakra; the heat produced raising Tayuya's internal temperature to dangerous levels and forcing her sweat glands into overdrive.

With her mouth feeling like it was stuffed with cotton Tayuya growled and tried to crawl but her legs wouldn't budge, instead throbbing in icy deadness in tandem with her heart. She tried to power through the lack of feeling, but to no avail, ironically only making herself hotter with her efforts, but the simple logic was buried underneath the teenager's fury.

"You spineless little slut! What the fuck did you do to me!"

The "spineless little slut" didn't answer. She simply laid there, head bent to the side and trickles of blood flowing freely from the corners of her bruised lips.

On her left forearm, her hitai-ate gleamed defiantly in the light of the afternoon sun, a little bent but otherwise a steadfast symbol of the village Tayuya had infiltrated.

"_I wish that every hopeless dopeface shithead in this village burns to a crisp like leaves in a fucking bonfire."_ Tayuya seethed mentally, _"Especially this cunt and that dickhead blonde, wherever fuck he is, with his fetish for annoying ass clones! _

"Annoying ass clones" was the least of the ways she could describe the squad of blue eyed imitations. They were also mind numbingly infuriating, fucking irritating, and a bunch of dickeating ass-diddling scrotumsucking bunch of smegmalickers. The way they absolutely refused to be hit, dodging and leaping like a pack of fucking monkeys.

Nevertheless they had all met there end good and proper, three of them had died by her very own hands. She had been especially brutal to the one that had punched in the ribs and grabbed her leg in a futile attempt to break it . . .

Tayuya stopped her growling. She bent her head to the side and looked at her outstretched left leg, hiking up the pant leg as she did.

There, right above her ankle, was a series of symbols in a circular design around her calf and spiraling upwards, pulsing and shimmering blue like an emergency light during an evacuation.

That was it! The motherfucking clone had done this to her!

Her beast like snarl returned with a vengeance, twice as loud and filled with dounle the anger.

She thrashed and howled, wildly ripping out patches of grass with abandon like the child a riled fighting dog bred with a lawnmower. In a matter of seconds she was out of breath and panting, her body physically burned out in contrast to the fury that still burned in her veins.

Tayuya used that unwanted reprieve to focus her resentment inwards. Now that she was still she realized that it was getting difficult to breathe, the numbness having crept its way up to her neck.

The curse seal now felt like a brand, a scorching island of fire surrounded by a pool of cool water. She had been warned of consequences of expending too much energy while using the curse seal, especially while in throes of stage two. Advice she had promptly ignored upon hearing it.

Tayuya locked her hate filled glare on the other young woman. Knowing she would need a clear head to overcome the both seals, she worked on fighting the spreading influence of the second one.

* * *

(Sakura)

Sakura watched with one eye propped open as her muscular opponent appeared to be having a stroke, something Sakura anxiously wished was true. She would have enjoyed seeing the sight with both eyes but it felt like much of an effort to pull of at the moment.

If the sheer miracle of the relatively painless result of her first wild landing was a favor by some deity looking on her from up high, then the she state she was in know was that deity's cruel way of withdrawing that favor without said deity directly appearing in front of the pink haired girl and telling her directly.

There was internal bleeding, that much she knew for certain, other than the fact that spine had snapped or at least misaligned since she could get nothing more than a sporadic twitch when she tried to move her legs. She prayed that the damage was only temporary and that her left arm, which at the moment felt like her bones had been replaced with glass rods then smashed thoroughly, would heal.

Her other arm seemed to be better shape, but like the rest of body (especially her midsection where the bruises were most prevalent), it throbbed and ached something terrible. She had tried focusing her chakra into it so she could try and heal the damage, but only managed to make herself woozy with the effort. To make matters worse, the very act of breathing was agony igniting the fractured hell that pulsed inside her.

"_So this is it how my life ends? Alone, beaten, possibly paralyzed and talking to myself untll I die a pitiful death."_

Salty tears rolled down Sakura's cheeks as she began to sob at her misfortune. The realization that she couldn't move her arms to wipe away that tear only cemented how hopeless she felt. It had been clear every since she had decided to be a ninja that she might one day die on the battlefield, a grim prophecy repeated over and over again in pamphlets, textbooks and morbid statistics, but facing the reality that she might _actually_ die was an experience she couldn't have readied herself for through any written exam or quiz.

"_I'm too young to die. I have so many things left to do. I have make things right with Ino, I have laundry to wash, I have to say sorry to my father for yelling at him, I have to go grocery shopping with my mother this Friday . . . oh Kami my parents! What's going to happen to them!" _

"_**Sleep, and rest our body." **_Whisperedthe now familiar voice in her mind which, unusually quiet until this point.

"_What about Sasuke? What about Naruto? Kakashi-sensei, Ino, Hideyoshi-san!_

"_**Sleep, and I will end the pain." **_The voice repeated.

"_Who's going to replace me on the team? Where will I be buried? What's going to happen to my stuff? Will anyone visit my grave?"_

"_**Sleep, and I will protect us."**_

In her growing panic Sakura wasn't aware of the quiet voice floating through psyche, she was too busy drowning in her own sorrow and envisioning of how life would go on without her.

So it wasn't much of a surprise when her eyes rolled back into her head, overwhelmed by the enormity of it all.

However, Sakura's eye didn't remain closed for long.

A sudden jerk and a spasm later both eyelids snapped open like window shutters in the midst of a powerful hurricane then closed again just as suddenly as they opened. Once disobedient legs trembled while the rest of the body they were attached convulsed violently. A change was going on, inside of the girl's mind and body, as mental and physical walls crumbled, heralding the release of forces long restrained and now free to roam the outside world.

Moist green eyes hardened and narrowed, deepening in color until they were a muddled brownish black tinged with a touch of crimson.

No longer in the driving seat, Sakura was unaware of the great upheaval taking place in her body and wouldn't be for several days to come.

* * *

(Tayuya)

Through sheer force of will Tayuya made the final push and forced the numbness and the curse seal down to a manageable level, but the effort had cost her dearly. Nearly out of chakra, she was left exhausted in every sense of the word and the transformation had reversed itself leaving her body in its original state, albeit very sore and aching.

Her timing couldn't have been better because a dull thud alerted her to the kunai that crashed into the dirt less then a foot away from her head.

Looking up she watched as her quarry stood up on two shaky legs and took a few tentative steps forward, like a babe learning to walk.

The metaphor would have been entirely appropriate had it not been for ghastly condition the other young woman was in. Clothes ripped and bloody, dirty hair matted down and entangled with twigs and leafs, bloody left arm twisted horribly and dangling uselessly to the side even as the right arm was shaking but cocked back in preparation to throw another dagger.

Tayuya flinched as her pupils met the other girl's, no longer seeing fear but a deep hunger for vengeance anchored by bitter hatred. Her flinch became an uncoordinated dive, that proved be a wasted effort because the knife once again fell short of its target.

"You will hurt us no longer. I will make sure of that."

Tayuya scrambled to her feet nearly falling down in the process but managing to stand upright.

"Is that so?" Tayuya said with a smirk, "Well bring it pinkie . . . if you have the balls."

The other girl didn't seemed fazed by the insult and quickly turned the tables with one of her own, "With an Adam's Apple like that, I think you're the man here. Or are you some sort of fucked up hybrid?"

Tayuya growled, body weak but temper flaring. After all, the size of her Adam's Apple was a sensitive topic for her. "Oh yeah you cocksucking flat-chested piece of shit! Say that to my fucking face!"

The bloody figure didn't reply instead limping forward as fast as she could manage, wobbling but determined. Tayuya growled then hobbled onward as well, her gait just as gawky yet unwavering in its course.

Tayuya was first to throw a punch, delivered at almost a snail's pace compared to the haymaker earlier, which "pinkie" awkwardly dodged, leaning back. Her one good hand swiftly came forward, middle and index finger extended to jab Tayuya in the eyes.

Temporarily blind, Tayuya swore, stumbled back and fell on her ass. She continued spewing curses like a vile fountain when a hand roughly grabbed her by the hair and yanked hard till it threatened to come out in clumps.

Struggling, she was thrown onto her back like a common whore. The air in lungs then forced through her mouth as a kick crashed into her side for the third time that day, followed by a pair of bony knees thrust aggressively into her abdomen.

"It looks like we're back where we started."

Breathless, Tayuya couldn't respond as a fist repeatedly smashed into her face until her head rang painfully like a bell in a windstorm.

She was thankful when the beating did cease, but the pain continued elsewhere as she felt fingers wrap around her throat and squeeze, compressing her windpipe and cutting off her supply of air.

A grim and dirty face with pursed bloodless lips became the center of Tayuya's attention, "Shush. Sleep now. It will all be over soon."

Tayuya resisted, gripping the arm with both of hers, trying to shake it off.

Her efforts were rewarded with the grip around throat tightening until she could her Adam's Apple being pressed into her spine and her head ready to burst from the increased blood pressure.

"_It can't fucking end like this." _She thought to herself, her sight slowly starting to become dim.

Just when things were looking bleak, the hand let go, allowing Tayuya to suck in air that had never before tasted so sweet.

She heard a cry of pain, a thump then a rustling noise behind her and then two hands grabbed her by the shoulders and hoisted her up onto unsteady legs.

"Are you alright Tayuya-chan?" A light male voice said into her ear.

"Don't fucking call me Tayuya-chan, fag." She replied with a wheeze, both annoyed and secretly relieved upon hearing the familiar voice.

"I see you've still got your bite, eh? I wouldn't be surprised if you had another set of teeth in your vag." The voice snickered.

"Shut up Ukon. I like your brother better"

Slowly the blurry filter covering her eyes lifted and she was able to see that her opponent writhing a couple of feet away bleeding from a fresh wound on her right side.

"It looks like bit off more then you could chew? Losing your touch maybe?" He handed her a soldier pill, lips carefully painted with turquoise lipstick upturned in mirth.

Tayuya decided to keep her mouth shut and swallowed the offered pill with a wince, appreciating the rush of energy she felt course through her. She could verbally rip him a new one later.

Putting aside the thought for later, she focused on the body lying in the grass. She wished that she time to really beat the shit out the scrawny cunt good and proper, but she was injured and there was the mission to think of.

She moved towards the soon to be corpse, but was stopped when finger tapped her on the shoulder.

"Let me take care of this one. I think you've seen enough action for today."

"Fuck you."

Sakon didn't get a chance to reply when the ground beneath their feet erupted in an explosion of dirt and sand.

Thanks to her excellent chakra control she had detected the subtle shift under her feet before the explosion and promptly leaped back.

Her partner however, wasn't so lucky.

The sand came alive and grabbed him by the feet, shrugging off his attempts to free himself before casually tossing him across the clearing like a rag doll in the hands of a sadistic child.

"What the fu-" was all Tayuya managed to say before she was submerged up to her nose in sand; the finely crushed grains pouring into her mouth and ears.

Before the mound of sand covered her head completely, she observed a girl with long red hair, chest heaving and muttering to herself while twitching erratically, walk over to the downed female she was moments from killing and crouch, staring at the body.

"_I swear, if I live through this, I will kill every last fucking redhead on the planet."_

* * *

(Somewhere Else In The Forest of Death)

The tiger, as big as a large rhino, roared as the shadow leaped high off of its branch up in the canopy.

When the figure was half way to the ground the massive feline took a leap of its own hoping to catch the two legged invader in its maw and promptly tear it to bloody chunks.

He was king of the northern section of the forest, and questionably the entire the forest, or at least he thought he was until the two monsters far above him on the food chain entered his territory and fought each other.

Weary of the monstrous presences he felt clash on his hunting grounds, Khan as he was called by his pride, had ran like a frightened kitten with the rest of the animals.

Initially the giant cat had been thrilled when it smelled the scents of many young "Two Legs" enter the forest; their scents flavored with fear and nervousness giving away their inherent inexperience and by default how weak they truly were.

All predators know weakness equates into easy pickings come mealtime.

And Khan had indeed enjoyed devouring the frightened younglings, three at a time, fifteen overall. He proved why he was master of all tigers by gracefully avoiding the hail of metal, fire and lightning thrown at him and then crushing their skulls without mercy.

Then the demons came and immediately destroyed his home, their epic struggle leaving behind a path of splinters and burnt remnants of a once beautiful clearing, causing the tiger king to flee in search of cover and ensure the safety of his pride.

That duel had reached the apex of intensity a short while ago and now two demons, "Two Legs/Snake Hybrid" and the "Two Legs/Fox Demon" had toppled to the ground mortally wounded.

And upon seeing his opportunity Khan had stalked over the unconscious "Two Legs/Fox Demon", avoiding the twitching snake monstrosity, its blood surely tainted with a variety of toxins.

Either way, he couldn't afford for the "Two legs/Fox Demon" to recover and return to steal his place as ruler, so killing it now would solve problems later down the road. Not to mention he might receive some of power infested in the mighty predator through devouring its flesh thus making him stronger then ever before . . .

However, before he could wrap his jaws around its skull, another "Two Legs", this one "normal" and seeming hardly more powerful than the younglings, had appeared ready to pounce and that's how the cat found itself in its current predicament.

Presently, the two fighters reached the point of colliding, Khan opening his mouth revealing an intimidating set of teeth each as large as a grown man's forearm and sharpened over years of hunting the a nearby wildlife, including giant bears and super sized centipedes.

Thoughts of victory were still coursing through the tiger's mind when "Two Legs" twisted its body in midair and unsheathed a long blade, which it stabbed into the tiger's stomach, allowing momentum to do the rest.

For a moment the two hung in midair, frozen in time and unaffected by gravited. Then the tiger continued rising while the "Two Legs" fell. They both eventually dropped to the ground, the human elegantly and the cat clumsily in a broken heap while it's innards along with a large measure of blood came crashing down around it, covering it's body and the surrounding area in thick red viscera.

The calm faced figure didn't hesitate to see that the tiger was dead instead running to the giant pale snake with a vaguely human face profusely bleeding black ichor through the gashes in its opaque white scales. The "Two Legs" ran its hands along the surface of the serpent beast, noting the missing right eye and smashed bottom jaw, probing for something within.

Convulsing the snake coughed violently and vomited a stream of smaller dead white snakes from its broken jaw.

Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on one's viewpoint, one tiny snake stirred among its dead fellows, weakly hissing before it lazily slithered up the new arrival's leg and wrapping itself around their neck.

Satisfied, the human adjusted its round pair of glasses and turned its attention to the other living creature in the clearing, a very large snake bite clearly displayed on its twitching torso, over its heart. What little surface area on the shaking body that wasn't exposed to open air was either burnt and peeled back or rapidly decaying and oozing puss and blood.

The stranger crouched down and was about to finish what the tiger had started when the snake hissed loudly in their ear, causing them to stop.

The person nodded as if understanding the serpent's "words".

"You're right Orochimaru-dono. He's as good as dead anyway, let him suffer for his arrogance."

A moment later both the snake and figure disappeared in a small whirlwind of leaves, leaving the blonde jinchuuriki to writhe and shudder on the scorched forest floor.

Five minutes ticked by before a crunching sound could be heard coming from behind a nearby tree. Then, like a timid mouse, a frail girl, lithe of frame and somewhat short in stature, stepped out and slowly approached the thrashing body, flinching when it unexpectedly jumped into the air due to a particularly severe spasm. She wore a black cloak with long sleeved, draw strings pulled tight so that that hood obscured her features similar to the figure that had stalked the area minutes before.

Finally, after coming within three feet of the shaking body, the female closed her eyes and extended her chakra, trying to find anyone in her immediate vicinity.

Relieved that she was alone, she gazed wearily at the sharp canines that glistened with discolored saliva under lips curled back in agony. Thin wisps of red chakra began to manifest around the body as she approached, content at first to lazily float like seaweed stirred about by ocean currents but then thickening and drifting towards her as they sensed her presence.

"_Orders are orders."_ She thought grimly to herself.

Reluctantly, she put her hand forward, bearing the searing pain as the inch thick threads of chakra melted the fabric of sleeves and made contact with her pale skin.

Her delicate fingers were mere millimeters from touching the jinchuuriki's decomposing left cheek when a bloodshot eye, pure crimson obscuring the slitted black pupils, shot open and a grisly hand clamped down on her outstretched arm.

She screamed and struggled but the hand didn't let go, what little remaining muscles untouched by the corrosive venom bulging with effort.

The glistening set of teeth that had entranced her earlier suddenly filled the entirety of her vision framing a grotesque shrunken tongue, mushroom white in color and dry like a autumn leave.

Hot breath reeking of sickness and rotting meat assailed her nostrils, but, like a certain female before her, she was helpless to stop what happened next.

Ignoring her screams, a murder of giant crows descended from the sky and began to peck away at the carcass of the dead tiger, their pleased caws alerting their brethren to the feast at hand.

* * *

**Yup, another cliffhanger. Sorry.**

**Now I've got good news and bad news . . . **

**The bad news is I'm uncertain when I'll be able to post the next chapter of A Deal With A Devil due to some time constraints in my schedule and some personal matters I have to deal with (I rushed to put this out early and tell you). **

**The good news is that I already have a very rough draft of the next chapter so you won't have to wait so long as I anticipate, in addition to some other stories I'm working on.**

**Oh and I have a new poll on my profile to help me decide the idea for my next story, so go and vote, every vote matters. I mean it!**

**P.S Thank you to all the people that took a moment to review my story. I know I haven't replied to all of them but I still appreciate the support.**

**Q: What's going to happen to Naruto?**

**A: He's okay for know. He'll (probably) pop up in the next chapter.**

**Q: And Sakura?**

**A: She's got her own problems to deal with.**

**Q: Why didn't Naruto receive memories of fighting the Sound Team?**

**A: Because he was too busy fighting Orochimaru to properly acknowledge the influx of new information. **

**Q: Who's the "Two Legs" and the girl?**

**A: Take some guesses, you may be right or you may be wrong. PM me your ideas.**


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